Resurrecting the Red
by Lady Jaye1
Summary: 50 yrs in the future. Wally's grandson takes up the mantle of the Flash.
1. First Encounters

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond or the Justice League Unlimited._

_Author's Note: I had originally started to post this story under the Batman Beyond section, but I decided to post it here instead as it will end up being more of a future JLU fic than just Batman Beyond._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 1: First Encounters**

The Universe, David Kae decided, did not share his unique sense of humor.

Actually in fact, it seemed to be laughing at him today.

_Stupid, damnable..._

FIRST his alarm had failed to go off at the designated time. (Okay, so like that was a major setback.) THEN he'd lost his shoes. (He was still trying to figure that one out.) And FINALLY came the last crutch to his already ill-fated (or so he thought) day.

Eighteen year old David Kae scowled up at the sign that read _'Hamilton Hill High School.'_

_Stupid, son of a..._

The teenager sighed as he trudged slowly up the steps to his new school. He'd known this move was coming, his uncle had forewarned him. Even so, transferring his senior year to a significantly larger school in Gotham City didn't just bite. It sucked. Really bad.

David paused only long enough to make a futile attempt to straighten his wind blown hair. He'd had to run extra fast (and take a few detours to hide his incredible speed) to make it to school on time.

The grandson of Wally West threw open his locker and jammed a few books into it before going off in search of his first class. The red haired young man had taken no more than two steps when he ran, literally, into a black haired, blue eyed vampirish looking zombie.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!" the zombie yelled. The jolt of impacting heads had sufficiently served to wake him out of his sleepless stupor.

"How about YOU watch where YOU'RE going?" David snapped. The two young men glared at each other until the bell suddenly rang.

Oh yes, his first encounter with Terry McGinnis had certainly gone smoothly.

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Terry McGinnis rubbed his now bruised forehead as he slumped down into his seat. _Damn red head, should watch where he's going._

"Hey, wake up!" The eighteen-year old groaned as Dana Tan poked him in the arm. His girlfriend peered at him in agitation. Terry blinked his eyes (which he was reasonably sure were bloodshot) as he tried to stay awake.

He failed. Miserably.

"Mr. McGinnis!" the old crone in the front yelled. "Since you are so attentive today, please inform the class about chapter twelve, section five."

_Chapter twelve, section five?_ What the hell...Slag it! Was he SUPPOSED to have read that?

"Uh..." Terry muttered sleepily.

"Mr. McGinnis, chapter twelve, section five."

Oh shit.

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The red head slumped in his seat. _Please don't call on me please don't call..._

"Mr. Kae is it? Please answer this equation."

Slag it. He hated algebra.

"Uh..." David muttered.

"Mr. Kae," the teacher tapped her finger in a no nonsense action. "I realize this is a new school for you, however, please answer the question."

"Uh..." Damn! He wasn't good at math!

"Mr. Kae..."

Oh shit.

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David sighed as he sat gloomily outside during lunch hour. This school was a lot than he was used to. He and Uncle Evan had lived in the large town of St. Anthony, Iowa before moving here. He hadn't wanted to move, but his uncle hadn't had a choice.

His uncle...

Technically Uncle Evan wasn't even his uncle; he was actually his dad's second cousin. David had been placed into his relative's care after his parents had passed away.

He reluctantly took a bite of his sandwich. He didn't really feel like eating, but his stomach was roaring in protest.

Damn his hyperaccelerated metabolism.

_Sigh._

This sucked.

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"So..."

"So what?" Dana asked. Maxine Gibson grinned mischievously at her while Terry pointedly ignored them both.

"So..." Max continued. "What do you two think of the new guy?" Max, being Max, had already proceeded to check out the new residential red head.

Terry grunted incoherently.

"Oh be quiet," Dana ordered. Terry shoved a fork full of some as of yet undefinable piece of school food. Making a face, he decided not to risk the rest.

"What's his problem?" Max asked.

"They ran into each other this morning. Terry was so asleep that he walked right into him."

"He walked into me!" Terry protested. Dana rolled her eyes and Max snickered before continuing.

"He's got really schway gray eyes," Max said. Terry muttered again and Dana smacked him in the head.

"What'd he say now?"

"You don't want to know," Dana answered.

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"Mr. McGinnis, I know you're bored, but please pay attention," the portly woman commanded. David smirked. So the zombie's name was McGinnis, was it? He preferred the nickname he'd already given to Terry. _The Delinquent_.

David watched as Delinquent yawned mightily as he struggled to sit up. What had this guy done all night? Dance, drink, and party? _More than likely_, he thought.

The portly woman sighed before turning her attention to the new red haired student in the back. (Not yet knowing her name, David had silently given her the nickname of 'Puffers'.)

"Mr. Kae, have you ever read any of The Illiad at your old school?" Puffers asked. Actually no, he'd read it on his own. Math and science he might hate, but David was an avid reader. (Although bookworm might be a more accurate term.)

"Yes, Mrs. Pu...ah..." he'd almost called her Puffers.

"Mrs. Lenfesty," she answered.

"Uh...yeah, I've read it," David answered modestly. Yeah, he'd read the whole thing in under two minutes flat.

"Mr. Kae, please tell Mr. McGuinnis here the reason for Achilles's hatred," she said. David answered her instantly.

"Hector had killed Achilles's best friend, Patroclos. It was what finally motivated him to join the battle against Troy."

"Very good," Puffers beamed. The Zombie Delinquent glared across the room at him.

David ignored him.

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"Can you believe that guy?" Terry asked in irritation. _That Guy_, as Terry now referred to him (also known as That Guy with the Red Hair), had quickly, and mysteriously, become a source of irritation to him.

"So he gets Literature class, big deal," Max said. "What's your problem any way? That guy seems pretty nice to me." _And he also looks pretty damn fine._

Terry grumbled at that. He hated to admit it, but Max did have a point. His irritation was probably just due to a severe lack of sleep.

"I'm just tired, that's all," Terry admitted. "I had a really late night last night."

"So I heard," Max smirked. Terry had rescued some rich heiress last night. It was all over the news.

Terry flipped open his locker as he checked his cell phone. To his dismay, there was a text message from the Old Man himself.

_Expect another late night._

_Bruce_

Damn. No sleep tonight.

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David thumbed lazily through the television channels as his gray tabby cat, Spock, purred contently in his lap.

Sports, Batman, cartoons...hey, Star Trek! Batman, Batman...

He finally settled on a news story about Batman. (He'd already seen that Star Trek episode numerous times before.) David watched it with interest for several minutes. He knew his grandfather had been the Flash, and so had his Mom after him. David also knew that his grandpa's uncle, Barry Allen, had been the second Flash.

David also knew that he'd inherited their super speed.

But what he didn't know, for his Uncle Evan was ignorant in the matter, were the identities of the other, former, members of the Justice League.

The eighteen year old knew he'd been hidden after his mother had been killed. His remaining relatives had decided it would be best to hide him from the public eye.

A rustling sound drew him from his thoughts as he looked up. Unopened boxes still littered their new apartment.

"David?"

His uncle came walking into the living room. Spock mewed softly, but refused to leave his perch in David's lap.

"Yeah?" David asked.

"How was school?" Evan Kae asked.

"It sucked."

"Give it a chance, you've only just started," his uncle reassured him. Weary brown eyes regarded his adoptive nephew as he ran a hand through his graying brunette hair.

"Yeah yeah, I will," David promised. He turned off the television and picked a protesting Spock up with one hand as he grabbed his school bag with the other. The teenager walked into his room and tossed the bag onto the bed. Spock immediately jumped out of his arms and made a beeline for David's pillow.

"Hey! That's mine!" David protested. Spock merely began to clean his paws as he ignored his outraged owner. The teenager gave up and took out his algebra book and opened it. He glared menacingly at it.

He really _really_ hated math.

His gray eyes flickered up to the photograph on his desk. A grinning red haired man was standing next to his wife, daughter, and son.

_You know, Uncle Evan is right_, David thought. _Except for my eyes, I really am the spitting image of Grandpa West._

With a sigh, the teenager began to work on a set of hated algebraic equations.

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_Author's Note: I hope the personality that I'm giving David is okay. I didn't want to make him a carbon copy of Wally. Also, I'm really just focusing on Terry and David at school for the first two chapters before I start branching out and getting into the real plot of the story._

_I hope you enjoy it._


	2. Day Two

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 2: Day Two**

Terry slumped wearily down into his seat. His body seemed to ache every where, especially in his ribs. Most especially in his ribs in fact.

_**Lesson number one for the day: Cybernetically enhanced French guys can hit hard.**_

"Mr. McGinnis..."

Why the hell was there a cybernetically enhanced French guy running around Gotham anyway?

"Mr. McGinnis."

Must. Have. Sleep. Think later.

"MR. MCGINNIS!"

Damn. Didn't they ever quit?

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David entertained the brief fantasy of sneaking into school that night and burning all the algebra books. Then he could destroy all the math progams on the school computers.

"Mr. Kae..."

Who really needs algebra anyway? It's just a waste of time.

"Mr. Kae."

No, he had a better idea. Instead of burning all the books, he could just steal all the answers! No, that wouldn't work. All the speed in the world wouldn't save him from Uncle Evan's wrath if he got caught cheating. And he would too. Sometimes he wondered if Uncle Evan was telepathic.

No, he usually got caught doing stupid stuff because he always felt guilty and fessed up.

Damn guilty conscience.

"MR. KAE!"

What the...why did she keep calling on him for? Was he wearing some red neon sign that screamed _'Call on Me!'_ Must be the red hair, damn it this really bites...

"MR. KAE!

Slag it.

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Max peered around the corner of her locker as a certain red head walked by. His ruffled red hair seemed wind whipped, as if a heavy tornado had swept over his head. It looked kinda cute.

"Whatcha looking at?" Dana asked. She knew perfectly well what, or who, Max was watching. Several other girls in the class had been eyeing the new guy as well, including Blade. Because of that, Nelson Nash had been glaring all day at the new red head behind his back. Max grinned playfully.

"Newbie, who else?"

"Have you talked to him yet?"

"Nope." Max grinned again as she placed a hand on her hip. "But I will. Just watch me."

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David's first indication that he had a secret admirer was when a dark skinned, pink haired girl brushed by him. This didn't really surprise him. What did surprise him was when she turned around and winked mischievously at him.

Whoa. Was she flirting with him?

This was new. Damn. What should he do? What should he do?

He stared after Max as she grinned at him before sauntering off. Red Hair really looked cute when he was dumbfounded.

This could be fun.

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Terry rolled his eyes as he attempted to pay attention to the chemistry lecture. Max, who was currently sitting next to him, had been covertly eyeing Red Hair, who was sitting a few rows in front of them.

He cracked a yawn as he eyed the chemistry teacher, Mr. Travinsky. Sometimes one of the students could get him off the subject by talking about the Atom, who had been one of Travinsky's favorite superheroes. Not today though, despite his own failed attempt at topic switching.

Oh great, Travinsky was talking about some German guy named Heisenberg now. Who really cares that he was the father of quantum mechanics? Definitely NOT him.

On impulse, Terry looked down at Red Hair, who was idly twirling his pen in obvious boredom. He wasn't the only one, as most of the other students in the class were either daydreaming...or asleep.

He cracked another yawn. Maybe he should be one of those who were asleep.

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Food! He needed food!

David stuffed a bag of Doritos and five Snickers bars into his bag, next to his lunch. No way was a measly sandwich and a donut going to fill him up.

"Whoa, you've practically got a whole grocery store in there!" a female voice quipped in amusement. David jumped and whirled around. Pink Hair was standing next to his locker.

"Ah...ah..." he stuttered. _Smooth David, sound like a complete moron_, he thought. Pink Hair peered around his locker door at the various snacks he'd stashed into it. She grinned again before laughing.

"And I thought Terry ate a lot!" _Terry?_ Oh yeah, that Delinquent guy.

"Uh..." _Say something damn it!_ "Umm, my name's David. Who are you?" he asked. _Okay, that was lame. But at least it's a start._ Pink Hair grinned at him as she playfully tugged on his green jacket.

"Schway jacket. My name's Max." _Max?_ Pink Hair, now identified as Max, waved goodbye as the bell rang.

"See you later David."

Whoa. This was unexpected. He'd completely forgotten about his snack.

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"Okay, now this is just pointless," Terry complained. The faculty had decided that the students needed to watch a drug awareness program. Some "special" traveling group from Central City was doing tours around the country, visiting different middle schools and high schools.

It was the most utterly dumbest thing he'd ever seen.

If the principal hadn't been watching everyone like a hawk, he'd go to sleep.

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David fidgeted from his seat in the back row in the auditorium. This was stupid. _As if high school students are actually going to pay attention to a drug awareness program._ It was boring as hell.

And the singing? That was overkill.

The young red head looked around in the dark auditorium. It was then he noticed that one of the control panels was in the back of the room. Hmm...

With a quick flash, the young speedster zipped unseen over to the control panel and flipped it off. (And disconnected a wire.) Then in a blink of an eye, he was sitting innocently back in his seat as all the power suddenly went off in the room.

The flashing lights went out and the speakers went dead.

Ahh...blessed silence.

At least until the student body cheered.

Apparently he hadn't been the only one going insane.

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Terry silently praised the angels in heaven. Someone up there was doing a good job. He'd rather have listened to one of Bruce's lectures than to watch that stupid program another second.

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Nelson Nash glared at the newbie by the water fountain. His girlfriend, Blade, had been eyeing him all day. It was time to show this twip who was boss around here.

"Hey!" he yelled. No one was around, so he threw a punch at the smaller red head. To his surprise, his fist slid right past the guy's head. Nelson was sure he'd aimed right for the head. Fine, then next time he'd...

Nash stumbled in surprise as he realized that newbie was no longer in front of him.

"Looking for me?"

Nelson whipped around to see that the new guy was standing behind him. What the hell...

He snarled as he lunged at the red head, but something caught his feet and Nelson found himself crashing face first into the dirty school floor. Why that dirty son of a, he'd pay for that!

The red haired bully jumped up, but newbie was already all the way down the hall.

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David walked into literature class, just barely missing the bell. What had that been all about? Oh well, he supposed that there would have been an asshole at any school he could have transferred to.

A moment after he walked in, Delinquent also stumbled in. But unlike David, he was late. The teacher glared at him but said nothing. He looked around and saw that the nearest available seat was next to David. Delinquent shrugged to himself and sat down next to him.

Was it his imagination, or did Delinquent have a smirk on his face?

Apparently it wasn't, because ten minutes later, he slipped a note onto David's desk.

_Saw your fight with Nash. The creep deserved it._

David read the note and quickly wrote a reply.

_Nash huh. What's up with that guy anyway?_

Terry wrote back.

_He's an asshole. The number of people who'd like to kick his ass would wrap twice around the block. I'd be at the front of the line. By the way, my name's Terry McGinnis._

David grinned to himself. Maybe Delinquent wasn't so bad after all. He didn't get a chance to reply right away. Puffers...uh, Mrs. Lenfesty, had noticed their lack of attention. A few minutes later though, he slipped the paper under Terry's book.

_My name's David Kae. I'm finding that no matter what part of the country you're in, school really really bites._

Underneath his newest note, stood a small cartoon of Nash being run down by a steam roller. Terry snorted, but managed not to laugh. Mrs. Lenfesty glared over at them, but they stared innocently back. Terry covertly added some new lines when her back was turned.

_Put me behind the wheel of the steam roller and it'd be perfect. By the way, you sure moved pretty fast in the hall._

David stared a second at the new part. Uh oh. Delinquent had seen his speed?

_Uh, yeah. I guess I am kinda fast. Some of my old teachers tried to get me to go out for track and cross country._

_Why didn't you?_ Terry wrote back.

_Most of the guys on the team were assholes._

_Go figure, _Terry wrote.

"Mr. McGuinnis! Mr. Kae!" Mrs. Lenfesty yelled. "I'll have to ask that you give me that note of yours!"

Uh oh.

David quickly slipped the piece of paper into his pocket and placed a piece of his literature notes on Terry's desk just as Puffers came charging over. She opened the "note", only to see that it was just the lecture notes from her class. The teacher glared down at them, but again she received a pair of innocent looks.

Terry cast a questioning look over at David. The red head grinned at him and slipped the real note part way out of his pocket. Realization hit him and Terry smirked back. How had that guy switched them that fast? Oh well. Terry grinned again.

Maybe Red Hair wasn't so bad after all.


	3. Night Time

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

_**Resurrecting the Red**_

**Chapter 3: Night Time**

"Any news on our French guy yet?" Terry asked. The old man at the computer console didn't bother to make any sign of acknowledgement as he opened up a file.

"His name is Fernand Debray. Word has it that his "toys" are stolen technology from Sevron Enterprises. He's a former employee."

"Sevron Enterprises?"

"It's an European based subsidiary of LexCorp," Bruce Wayne answered.

"Sounds interesting."

"It gets better. LexCorp reported a security breach in their networking system two days ago. They're reluctant to say what was stolen."

"You think there's a connection?" Terry asked. _Of course there is McGinnis, otherwise he wouldn't even mention it._ Bruce eyed him intently as he swiveled his chair around to face the teenager.

"With LexCorp there's ALWAYS a connection."

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"I'm heading out Uncle Evan."

"Just be back by eleven. You've got school tomorrow."

David stuffed a few creds into his pocket as he grabbed his favorite green jacket. Underneath he wore black pants and a dark blue muscle tee.

The teenager decided not to take the bus and instead opted to walk. He'd spotted a video arcade on the way home from school. Not having anything better to do, he'd decided to check it out.

Just as he rounded a corner, two brightly colored figures stepped out of the shadows. A young man and a woman, both dressed as clowns. The tall clown flipped out a knife as he stepped in front of David.

"Give us our tribute Dreg," he smirked. David gave him a confused look. Tribute?

"Yeah, this is Jokerz territory," the girl said. "You wanna pass through, you give us money." She held out a hand in front of his face. David looked at her for a moment, then at the other Joker, and then back again. Then he stuck his hands in his pockets and grinned.

"Sorry," he quipped. "But you two aren't my types, especially him." David pointed up at the male Joker. "Go play street hookers somewhere else." The two Jokerz reddened indignantly at the smirking teenager. The tall Joker grinned suddenly as he caressed his blade.

"A funny man huh? Well I'm not laughing Dreg. Make me laugh." The Joker swung his knife at the teenager, but David easily sidestepped out of the way. He then stuck his foot out and tripped the clown like he'd done earlier to Nelson.

"Hey!" the girl yelled. David turned just as she whipped a metal chain at him. The metal whip seemed to move in slow motion for the young speedster, so he simply reached out and grabbed it. Then he gave it a hard jerk.

The female Joker came tumbling forward in surprise and David took the instant to wrap the metal chain around her several times. As she struggled against her bonds, the man tried to get back up. David planted a foot into his back.

"Stay down Bobo and be a good boy," he said. He then kicked the clown's knife away before sauntering calmly down the street. The two would be thieves stared after him in bewilderment.

That had been interesting, but now to find the arcade.

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A dark shadow crept along the rooftop of the tall building. It jumped over the side and landed on a narrow ledge. After a quick survey of its surroundings, the figure leaned back against the building and touched the side of its head.

"You sure he'll come here?" Terry asked. He was currently perched on the side of the Wayne-Powers research facility.

_"No,"_ came the stoic reply._ "But there's a good chance he will. While I personally never had anything to do with LexCorp, Powers unfortunately wasn't of the same opinion. He and Alexandra Luthor were both business rivals but they traded information under the table. I'm sure Paxton has kept up the practice."_

"Maybe, but I don't see...wait a minute..."

_"Our friend?"_

"Yeah."

_"Follow him McGinnis, but don't engage him just yet."_

"Gotcha." Terry turned on his camouflage mode and swept down near the burly European. He was dressed in simple black clothing, but his cybernetic implants easily caught the dim light. The Frenchman, Debray, held out his false right arm. Twisting wires emerged from his fingers and attached themselves to a control panel. After several long seconds they finally hacked into the program and bypassed the security system.

Debray walked quickly inside and Terry padded silently behind him, instincts at full alert. He needed to be careful and make sure he wasn't noticed.

This should be interesting.

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Whoa...cool.

David looked around him in approval. It was even better than he had thought. He didn't even know where to start. He decided to check out one of the VR (virtual reality) games. Let's see, Doom Racer, Budukai Warrior, Elf Kingdom...

"Hey! David!" David turned around at the voice and saw Max coming toward him. He froze briefly in surprise but quickly smiled in reply.

"Hey," he said. The pink haired teenager grinned at him as she walked up.

"Watcha doing?" Max asked.

"I saw this on the way home, thought I'd try it out," David said. "But I'm not sure where to start." The girl grinned at him and grabbed an arm.

"There's a slammin' game over here called Gear Wars, want to play?" she asked. Max didn't wait for a response and proceeded to lead the red head toward the game in question. David grinned to himself.

The night was turning out better than he thought.

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Terry peeked around the corner. So far Debray had done nothing more than hack into the main computer system. He couldn't really tell what he was looking at, but he did catch the words _'Cadmus.'_

He walked quietly toward the Frenchman, intending to surprise him.

Unfortunately, as Terry had begun to learn, plans do not often work as they should.

Despite being in camouflage mode, Debray somehow saw him.

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"David! Behind you!" Max yelled. David twisted around and shot the mechanic warrior that had dropped behind him. He and Max were currently in the middle of Gear Wars. They were both currently fending off a small hoard of giant Mechs.

His virtual self dropped to a knee and quickly fired off a series of blasts that destroyed the remaining enemy machines. The two teenagers played for about another fifteen minutes until the game ended.

Max pulled the VR helmet off her head and pumped her arm in triumph.

"Oh yeah! We were slammin'!" she exclaimed. Then she turned to regard the smiling red head at her side.

"You know," Max grinned, "You've got quick reflexes. Terry and I played that last week and even we didn't get that far." Strangely, a very brief expression of alarm crossed his face before disappearing. Max blinked at that, but it was gone. It must have been her imagination.

"Come on," she said. "Let's go play Doom Racer."

David let her lead him to the next game. He really needed to be careful about his speed.

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"Uh..." Terry grunted as he was thrown against a wall. How had the creep seen past his camouflage mode? It must have something to do with the cybernetic implants in his eyes. Damn...

_"McGinnis, go after him,"_ Bruce said.

"Yeah, don't need to tell me twice." Debray had bolted from the building and was trying to escape. Terry raced outside and opened his wings as he took to the air. He barely dodged a few energy shots from the escaping European.

"Damn," Terry muttered. He threw a batarang down at him, but it only grazed his chest. Debray fired another few shots before taking off towards the downtown area.

Slag it, he was fast.

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Max and David were standing in line for Doom Racer when they heard people yelling outside. They were looking curiously at the exit when they heard someone yell 'Batman.' Without a second thought Max was racing outside, with a curious David following close behind.

David pulled Max out of the way just as some strange, half machine guy came tearing down the street. He heard the pink haired teenager gasp as a random energy shot from the stranger blasted through one of Batman's wings.

Batman.

Despite the danger, David stared at him in fascination. So this was Batman, huh? _Schway._ The young speedster looked around and saw that a small crowd of bystanders was beginning to gather. Damn it, this wasn't good. These people could get hurt.

Apparently Batman had come to the same conclusion, because he yelled for everyone to get out of there. That was right before the strange cyborg guy smashed through a car.

Okay, this definitely wasn't good.

The cyborg picked up the car and threw it at the darkly garbed vigilante. Max gasped again and seemed on the verge of yelling at Batman. But then she glanced around her and up at David for some reason and closed her mouth.

David understood her anxiety, or at least, he thought he did. Batman wasn't doing very well against that guy and...what the...

Was he talking with a French accent?

Oh well, didn't matter. The point was, Bats was in trouble. Cyborg guy had him pinned under his right arm. Several weird wires had emerged from his hand and had connected to the Bat suit. He wasn't sure, but it looked like electrical energy was being drained from Batman's suit.

Damn, he should do something. David looked around, but everyone's attention was focused on the fight. Max even seemed to have forgotten he was there. Good.

David zipped over to the destroyed car. Several pieces had come loose, including the drive shaft underneath the vehicle. David grabbed it and raced past the fighting duo and swung the long metal pipe at the cyborg's head. Still going at full speed, David stuck the drive shaft between his legs and flipped him onto his back. Then he zipped back to Max's side, as if he'd never left.

All anyone had seen was a quick green blur.

Terry stared up in confusion, but quickly took advantage of the situation. However, Debray seemed to have changed his mind about fighting Terry and instead took off. The teenager made to go after him, but found that he couldn't. Most of the energy had been drained from his batsuit; there wasn't enough to give chase.

Fortunately, he'd managed to stick a tracer on the Frenchman's clothing.

Terry rubbed his head as he looked around. He gave a start as he realized that Max and Red Hair were in the crowd. A piece of metal by his foot drew his attention and Terry looked down. A long, twisted metal pipe was lying at his feet. He picked it up and examined it before looking around.

What the hell had happened?

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Max gave a sigh of relief and suddenly remembered with a start that David was next to her. She looked up at him, but he was only staring after Batman. A strange expression of wistfulness crossed his face and she couldn't resist asking.

"What?" she asked. David looked down at her in surprise before replying.

"Nothing, just wondering what it'd be like, that's all," he said and nodded in the direction Batman had gone in. "Dumb huh?" Max smiled at that.

"Not really," she said. David looked at her for a moment before eyeing his watch. It was already 10:28.

"Hey, I have to be home by eleven," he said. "I guess I'll be going." He waved good bye to Max and walked down the street. As soon as he was out of sight, he ran the rest of the way home.


	4. Investigating Luthor

_Author's Note: For those of you that are wondering, I will work other JLU members into future chapters. I will also reveal some of David's personal history in the near future too._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 4: Investigating Luthor**

"Does he ALWAYS sleep this much?" David asked. Through a twist of fate, he had ended with Max and Terry as partners in chemistry lab.

"He works late nights," Max answered. Terry grumbled in response, but said nothing. He had a really bad headache.

"Doing what?" David asked curiously.

"Running errands for Bruce Wayne," she said. Terry muttered incoherently again as he pretended to read the instructions. The last thing he needed was for Travinsky to catch him sleeping and send another demerit file home to his mom.

"By the way Ter," Max said slyly, "We saw Batman last night." Terry lifted an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah?" he asked. "Where at?"

"At the VR Room downtown. David and I ran into each other there," she said. Terry yawned as he looked at the red head.

"What'd you think of Batman Kae?" he asked. The red head grinned as he placed three chemical tubes in front of them.

"He seemed pretty cool. That guy he was fighting was weird though," he answered. David paused at the smirk on Delinquent's face.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," Terry answered. "I'm just agreeing. Batman IS pretty cool."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Bruce set down the phone and stared thoughtfully at the computer screen in front of him. What was Alexandra Luthor up to now? That woman was definitely Lex's daughter.

According to Kent, Luthor had met recently with a couple of French nationals to discuss some new business contract. Clark had said he'd look into it more.

Bruce had also tried to track Debray. Terry had managed to place a tracer on the man, but Bruce had lost the signal a few hours ago. Not only that, but the old man couldn't help but wonder at what Debray had been looking at. Terry said that he'd seen the word 'Cadmus'.

Cadmus. Why was there even a file on Cadmus in one of HIS research facilities? Debray had broken into the main Wayne-Powers research facility. Derek Powers must have been up to something, perhaps both he and Luthor.

Hmph, Luthor. He supposed that Terry would have to deal with one eventually. Unfortunately, this Luthor was just as ruthless as her late father.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Just HOW much can you eat?" Terry asked in surprise. David reddened slightly in embarrassment. He'd fully intended to eat lunch outside in his usual place, but Max had forcefully drug him inside to join the others.

Now he was sitting with Max, Delinquent, Dana Tan, and a few other people he didn't know.

"Yeah," David shot back. "Well just how much can YOU sleep?" Delinquent blinked in surprise before giving a wry smile. Red Hair didn't back down from a challenge. He respected that. Max leaned forward to inspect the two empty chips bags in front of him. And the missing sandwich. And the three candy bar wrappers.

"And yet he doesn't get fat," Dana observed. David blushed a little before protesting.

"Hey! I'm a growing boy, okay?" He downed a second bottle of Pepsi before the gaping eyes of the females at his table. Terry and another guy laughed. The other guy, David guessed that he must be a basketball player, slapped his leg as he chuckled in admiration.

"You must have one heck of a metabolism!" he laughed. David grinned slightly as he pushed down the impulse to eat the other two sandwiches in his bag. He decided to eat them later when no one was watching.

The last thing he wanted was for people to think he was a freak.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Terry idly twirled his pen as Mrs. Lenfesty continued her lecture on the "Great" battle between Achilles and Hector.

Who really cared about Achilles and Hector anyway?

Apparently Red Hair did. He seemed to know the answer to every question that Lenfesty threw his way. Terry stared tiredly down at the open book in front of him. He wondered if Bruce had made any headway yet. He was still mightily pissed at being beaten by a stupid cybernetically enhanced French guy.

Speaking of that, what the hell had happened last night? Terry hadn't seen anything, as he had been too preoccupied with Debray. It had also been dark, so that hadn't helped either. One second, Debray had been sucking all the energy from his suit, and the next second...

All Max had seen was a green blur, and maybe not even that. She had admitted that even with the street lights, it had been dark. So no luck there.

Bruce had sure raised one heck of an eyebrow though when he told him about it. The old man had said nothing more though, except, of course, to berate him for not bringing the twisted metal pipe in. Terry had apologized, but really, he berated himself too. He'd been so tired that he hadn't thought of bringing the piece of metal in. There might have been a clue on it.

Of course, it was gone by now.

"Mr. McGinnis."

Terry looked up to see that Lenfesty was towering over him. The pink cardigan over her shirt and the horrific pink shoes made him shudder. Pink was definitely NOT her color.

"Mr. McGinnis, please read lines 762 to 782," she commanded. Okay, that wasn't so bad. He didn't have to think too hard to read a few lines.

"Then give me your interpretation in your own words," she said.

Damn it.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

A bored David idly drew cartoons into the side of his notes as Delinquent began to read. Damn, this was too easy. He'd already read the _Illiad_ twice before. The third time was a little much. Not only that, but everything was going too slow for him.

"Hector, I cannot forget. Talk not to me of bargains," McGinnis read. David mouthed the words silently as Delinquent continued. "Lions and men make no truce, wolves and lambs have no friendship-they hate each other forever..."

Arrggh! This was going much too slow! David fidgeted and tapped his foot rapidly. Then he forced himself to stop when he realized that his rapidly accelerating foot was burning a hole in the carpet.

Oops.

Hopefully no one would notice it for a while.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Anything new?" Terry asked. He yawned as he walked up next to Bruce's chair. Something seemed to be missing, oh yeah. The dog.

"Where's Ace?" he asked.

"In a moment," Bruce answered. "But first, take a look at this." He opened an email from Clark. "Apparently Ms. Luthor has been rather busy. She met with two of Debray's former employers last week. Clark says she has another meeting scheduled with one of them tomorrow. He said he'll see if he can listen in on it."

"You make it sound easy," Terry said.

"You're right. I doubt that Clark learns anything of value...if he even hears anything at all. Luthor's smart, she won't release sensitive information if there's a possibility that Kryptonian ears can overhear. Lex trained her well."

Terry studied the message from Clark for a second before pulling the Batsuit out of his bag.

"So where do you want me to start?" he asked. "And where's Ace?" A flash of amusement passed briefly through the old man's blue eyes as he picked something off the floor next to him.

"Before you go on patrol tonight, I have a special assignment for you," Bruce said. "And you won't even need your suit."

"Yeah, what?" Terry asked. Bruce handed him a plastic bottle containing a thick amber colored solution.

"Ace needs a bath."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

David studied the old photographs in front of him. He didn't have much, but they were better than nothing.

He especially liked the picture of his mom where she was wearing the Flash costume. She was standing next to his dad and one of the Green Lanterns. It wasn't John Stewart, but he _was_ a human. David had no idea what his real name was. _(Look in Author's note below.)_

The teenager took out another photo. This one had his grandfather, the Green Arrow, and the Black Canary. They were posing in front of some fountain. He wasn't exactly sure where they were because all it said on the back of the photo was _'Scotland, 2006.'_ David wondered who it was that had taken the photo.

He supposed he'd never find out.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Terry and the dog glared at each other. How the hell Ace had managed to get completely covered in mud and burrs was beyond him. No wonder Bruce wouldn't let him inside. After a not so brief battle of wills, Terry had finally managed to get the mutt cleaned.

Getting him dry however was another matter.

Terry held out a hair dryer and pointed first at the dog, then himself.

"You sit, me dry," he commanded.

Ace shook himself off and ran in the other direction. A wet Terry shook his fist as he attempted to wipe the wet dog fur off his clothes.

**"ACE!"**

He had a feeling that the old man was getting some kind of twisted amusement out of this. Now he was going to have to take a shower.

After he caught Ace that is.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The red haired woman tapped her forefinger thoughtfully against her chin. Her long hair was curled tightly behind her head in an elegant bun as jade green jewelry adorned her ears and neck. An expensive black business suit covered her lithe figure. Pointed high heeled boots pushed away from the desk as she stood up.

Sharp blue eyes narrowed at the small, black object in her hands. It was bat shaped and used to have a tiny computer chip inside of it. It had since been removed.

She picked up her cell phone as she walked to a nearby window and stared out. The business woman knew it had only been a matter of time before she began to draw inquiring eyes. A soft click reached her ear as the person on the other end picked up.

"This is Alexandra Luthor," the business woman said. "What we discussed earlier, get it done."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

_Author's note: The Green Lantern in the photo is Kyle Rayner. He's never appeared (to my knowledge) in the JLU cartoon, but he's the newest Green Lantern in the DC comics. He's the fifth Lantern after Alan Scott, Hal Jordan, John Stewart, and Guy Gardner._


	5. A Fateful Meeting

_Author's Note: I had several responses to the part about Kyle. I stand corrected. I knew that there's a few episodes that I missed, so thanks for telling me._

_I'm also trying to update as soon as possible. So far my professors haven't done too much more than lecture, but once they really start to throw the assignments at me, I'll probably only be updating once a week._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 5: A Fateful Meeting**

Somehow Clark Kent knew that he should have known better. A Luthor was a Luthor after all. Maybe he was getting old...he'd better not let Bruce hear him say that. He'd never hear the end of it.

"How did you know Luthor?" he asked coldly. The red haired woman merely smiled cryptically at him. The Kryptonian had been intending to listen in on her meeting with the two businessmen from Sevron Enterprises, but somehow things had gone awry.

"No need to be so formal Clark," she smirked. "Call me Alexandra." Clark gave a start. She knew? She knew who he...Damn. This wasn't good. The woman finally stood up from her desk and a sudden feeling of weakness washed over him. Clark knew that feeling all too well. His eyes drifted to the green jewelry on her body.

It was made from kryptonite.

Clark managed a slightly sarcastic laugh as he took a step back. Had she learned nothing from her father? Humans could be affected by long term exposure to kryptonite. It was how Lex had developed his cancer in the first place.

Her eyes narrowed at his laugh and she touched the green necklace around her neck.

"I suppose you're laughing at this? You must be thinking I'm incredibly foolish to risk getting kryptonite poisoning. But really Clark, or do you prefer Superman?" Clark glared at her as she continued. "But really, that thinking is so...outdated. After all, with the advances that are available to us in medicine today, do you seriously think that this poses a threat to me?" She took another step forward.

"In fact," she smirked. "What would you say if I told you that there is a way to manufacture kryptonite? False, yes, I know. But so are these and you can feel their effect, don't you?" Clark took another painful step backwards as she moved forward.

"You think you know everything, don't you Luthor?" he gasped. Oh yes, Bruce was going to give him hell over this. The red haired woman smiled as she made a show of preening her hair.

"No, Mr. Kent, actually I don't. However," her eyes narrowed darkly at the Kryptonian. "I do know that two...associates of yours in Gotham are poking their noses into my business. And I don't appreciate it."

Clark watched her in growing alarm as she pulled a gun out of her jacket. Somehow he had the feeling that he wasn't going to like this at all.

"You'd better not touch them," he warned.

"Or what?" she asked. "You'll kill me? Like you did to the man who killed your son?" That touched a sore spot in the Kryptonian's heart and he carelessly lunged at the woman.

She pulled the trigger.

Clark felt something slam into him as he crashed back into the wall. Something wasn't right, he felt weak...

"Newsflash Kent, that wasn't an ordinary weapon. It's uses kryptonite as its power base."

Clark staggered to his feet as he realized that he was in deep trouble. He needed to get out of there, fast. Alexandra Luthor aimed her weapon again at the weakened Kryptonian, but he managed to smash through the window and jump out before she could pull the trigger.

She slowly lowered her weapon and stared out the gaping hole in her outer wall. _Hmph._ Luthor wondered how Bruce Wayne was faring.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Bruce glared out the window of his limousine. He'd had the unpleasant duty of meeting with Paxton Powers today over last night's break in at the research center. As much as Bruce disliked Paxton, he was thankful that the younger man didn't quite have the same sharp mind that his father had possessed.

For that reason, Bruce had been able to subtly manipulate the younger Powers without him realizing it. He had come to discover that Paxton truly had no idea about what Debray had stolen. Whatever Derek Powers had been up to concerning Cadmus, it was unlikely that Paxton knew. Father and son had been notorious rivals before the former had died.

Bruce rubbed his eyebrows tiredly as he picked up his cell phone. For once he would like to hear some good news. Unfortunately, in his experience, one could never wait on good news.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Hey, you awake?" Dana asked. Terry came out of his daydream to see that the others were smirking at him. The others, besides Dana, included Max, Chelsea, and Newbie. They'd decided to go get a pizza together after school and Max had insisted on bringing David along. Terry supposed that was okay. Red really didn't seem that bad anymore. Anyone who was on Nelson Nash's bad list was okay with him.

"Yeah," he yawned. "I'm awake. Just wondering about the old man. He had to go to a meeting today with Paxton Powers and he wasn't too happy about it."

"Is he ever happy about anything?" Max asked.

"Good point."

"You guys make him sound like an ogre," Chelsea said. "Is he really that bad?"

"Sometimes," Terry admitted. "But once you get used to him, he's not as bad."

"You know," David finally said. "From what I hear, he used to a real womanizer back in the day." Terry actually burst out laughing at that. Red Hair had no idea.

"Yeah, except the old man was too stubborn and hard headed to keep any of them," he said. "He couldn't commit to a relationship if he tried. The guy has absolutely no social life. It's no wonder he's alone."

"Maybe he needs a girlfriend," David joked wryly. "Maybe you should post a want ad for him on a singles site." Terry and Max laughed at the idea.

"Yeah," Terry said, "Crazy, nonsocialable, gloomy old rich guy with a god complex needs a woman who can tolerate the above listed conditions."

"Mr. Wayne would kill you if you did that Ter," Max said. Even so, the thought of it was hilarious.

"I'll save it as an idea for April Fool's..." Terry's cell phone rang then and he picked it up. He listened solemnly for a moment before closing it and standing up.

"What's wrong Ter?" Dana asked. Terry sighed as he pulled on his coat.

"It's the Old Man, he's coming here to pick me up. And he doesn't sound too happy," he added. Dana muttered under her breath and the others pretended not to hear. David listened curiously however. He'd had no idea that she could swear like that.

"How close is he?" Max asked. A black limo pulled out in front.

"That close," Terry said. David peeked curiously out the window. He'd never seen a billionaire before. Terry noticed this and smirked.

"Never seen him before, huh?"

"Nope," David answered. Terry waved him to follow after him.

"I don't think the old man's in the mood for introductions, but you can probably get a good look at him when he opens the door to glare at me."

Curiosity aroused, David trailed after him in the hopes of getting a glimpse of the, by now, infamous Bruce Wayne. Could he really be such an intimidating old man?

The side of the limousine opened up and he could just barely see an old man sitting in there. The old man's blue eyes swept briefly over him to look at Terry, when abruptly, the eyes flashed back to him.

David had the uncomfortable sensation of being under a microscope as a pair of impassive blue eyes pierced into his. The old man even went as far as to stick his head out of the limo to stare at him. What was wrong, did he have pizza sauce on his face or something?

He saw the old man turn to McGinnis and say something. His classmate seemed surprised, but he shrugged his shoulders and walked back to David.

"He wants to meet you," Terry said with surprise. He couldn't understand what Bruce was doing. He'd been in such a hurry before, but now the old man was staring at David like he was ghost. Not only that, but he actually wanted to meet him. Terry was confused.

David followed warily after Delinquent. Why did the old man want to meet him?

"David, this is Bruce Wayne," Terry said. The old man continued to study him intently as his assistant continued. "Mr. Wayne, this is David Kae. He just transferred to our school the beginning of this week." David held out a hand to the old man.

"How do you do Mr. Wayne?" David asked politely. The old man reached out and firmly shook his hand. The teenager found himself surprised by the strong grip of the aging billionaire.

"Very well," Bruce Wayne answered formally. "And you Mr. Kae?"

"Uh...I'm fine," David answered. Max and Delinquent hadn't been kidding when they said he was intimidating. What had he been like when he was younger?

"If I may ask, Mr. Kae, where did you transfer from?" he asked.

"St. Anthony, Iowa," the teenager answered. Terry looked back and forth in confusion. Why was Bruce taking the time to talk to his classmate? He didn't get it. Hadn't the old man been in a hurry just moments before?

"I see," Bruce answered. This time he smiled at the teenager, but the intensive look in his eyes spoiled the effect. "And how are you enjoying Gotham? Have you seen anything interesting lately?" David searched madly for a reply, but the only thing he could come up with was his experience at the gaming center.

"Well, I saw Batman this week when was at the VR Room downtown," he said. Bruce's eyes narrowed at that.

"You don't say?" Bruce murmured. "How interesting. Are you and Terry getting along well in school?" David swallowed a lump in his throat and nodded. McGinnis had understated when he was describing the old man. This guy was more than a little terrifying.

"We..didn't get along too well the first day," David admitted. "We ran into each other. Literally."

"I think my head still hurts," Terry muttered. He was starting to get a little annoyed. It wasn't that he disliked David, he just couldn't understand why Bruce was suddenly so interested in him. A small smirk formed briefly on the old man's lips before disappearing.

"So you haven't had any problems adjusting to a new school?" Bruce asked.

"Umm...not really." This was starting to feel like an interrogation.

"He and Nelson got into a fight," Terry suddenly added. "David's pretty fast. Nelson never even landed a punch on him." Bruce's eyebrows lifted a fraction.

"Pretty fast you say?" The old man was silent for a long moment before he went on to shock even Terry. "Have you ever ridden in limousine before Mr. Kae?" David shook his head no as Bruce continued. "How would you like a ride home?"

Terry gaped at his employer, but the old man shot him a glare. Terry slowly closed his mouth as he and David looked at each other. What the hell was Bruce up to? Why was he bothering to...

"Where do you live Mr. Kae?" Bruce asked.

"Uh...East Side Apartments, but you really don't have to..."

"Get in," Bruce commanded. David immediately climbed in after Terry.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"That was weird," Dana said.

"Yeah, why does Newbie get to ride in the limo?" Chelsea asked. Max knotted her eyebrows together as she stared thoughtfully after the departing vehicle.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

The man stood up in irritation and looked around at the Gotham skyline. He was currently standing on top of Gotham's largest bridge. According to his information, Wayne was supposed to have been taking this route. However, his contacts had recently informed him that there was a change in plans.

The assassin quickly levitated into the air and flew off in a new direction.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"So Mr. Kae, how do you prefer your coffee?"

David resisted his usual answer of cream and thirty two sugars. Somehow he didn't think Mr. Wayne would be amused by that, even if it was the truth.

"Uh, I'll take cream and...eight sugars please," he said instead. Terry almost spit out his own coffee.

"Eight sugars?" Terry asked. To his surprise, Bruce actually seemed to be amused at that as he handed several sugar packets over to the teenager.

"Eight sugars," Bruce repeated calmly. "Is that all?"

"Yes sir," David answered. He was very confused. First Bruce Wayne had actually wanted to meet him, then he offered him a ride home, and now he was offering him coffee? What the hell was going on?

At least the car was cool. It was one of those automated ones that didn't need a driver. There was a steering wheel in the front for one if a driver was needed, but apparently Mr. Wayne had decided that a driver wasn't necessary at the moment.

Bruce sipped his own coffee as he studied the young man over the rim of his cup. It was uncanny. This young man, with the exception of his eyes, was the very image of Wally. But Wally's daughter had died before her child had been born, hadn't she? There had been conflicting stories around her death that Bruce had never really trusted. But he did seem to remember that Amanda Waller had been...

Waller.

Several things clicked in Bruce's mind. Iris West Cullen had met with Amanda a month or two before she died, hadn't she? He remembered now, because he'd been a little suspicious of it. Hmmm...perhaps he needed to give Waller a call later.

Bruce dropped his cup as the car gave a sudden violent shake. Without warning, the car suddenly flipped onto its side and began careening out of control.

"Terry!" he started to yell, but Terry was already in motion. He was trying to get the door open when the smell of gas hit their noses. Terry swore, they had maybe seconds before the car...

_Whoosh._

A disorientated Terry suddenly found himself being deposited on the side of the street with Bruce. As he looked around in confusion, he saw the limo explode about a block down the street. The teenager gaped at the explosion and then up at the red haired young man standing above him. David smiled sheepishly as he handed Terry's school bag to him.

"Are you two okay?" David asked nervously.

"Wha..how...what the..." Terry sputtered in confusion. He looked over at the old man, but Bruce didn't appear to be the least bit surprised. In fact, if anything else, he appeared very pleased.

"I thought as much," Bruce said as he fixed a stony glare on the red haired teenager. "You're Wally West's grandson."

David gulped as Terry whipped his head around to gape at him. What should he do now?


	6. Secrets Revealed

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 6: Secrets Revealed**

"If you don't mind Mr. Wayne, _how_ exactly did you escape again?" Commissioner Barbara Gordan asked suspiciously. Secretly she was really asking, '_What did you get into now Bruce?'_ Several police cars had arrived soon after the incident. Barbara had decided to come the moment she had heard that Bruce and Terry were involved.

Terry and David stood awkwardly off to the side as Bruce did all the talking. The confused red head was still trying to figure out how Bruce Wayne had figured it out. Granted, the speed was a dead give away, but still…

A calmer Terry on the other hand, had recovered enough from his shock to be able to stop gaping at his classmate. Red Hair was the Flash's grandson? It was...unreal. After discovering who Barbara and Clark really were, the teenager had made it a point to find out more about the other Justice League members. Barbara had told him a few stories from the short time that she'd been in the League. He'd even met John and Shayera Stewart briefly when they had come over with Rex to visit Bruce.

Now that he thought about it, David had been at the VR Room that night with Max. That meant that he must have been the one to help him against Debray.

Terry listened with half an ear as Bruce 'explained' how they had escaped the exploding car. According to him, the force of the blast had miraculously blown them free of the doomed vehicle. He watched as Gordan raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying one word of it.

David, who was still worrying about his predicament, gave a sudden jerk as he realized Commissioner Gordan was now eyeing him intently. Great. Did she know who he was too? His uncle was going to kill him.

Bruce followed Barbara's gaze as she silently studied the red haired teenager. His blue eyes glittered slightly in amusement but his stony face betrayed none of his thoughts. Barbara was intelligent; she had to know who David Kae looked like. She herself had served for a brief time in the Justice League, not to mention that Wally and Dick had been good friends.

Barbara looked back at Bruce and he could see the hidden question in her eyes. Good, so she _had_ noticed. Perhaps he should drop her another clue.

"It's fortunate for us that David had such _quick_ reflexes," he said quietly. Barbara's eyes narrowed slightly at that before a sly smile appeared briefly on her face.

"I...see," she murmured. Then, so that only Bruce could see, she silently mouthed the words _'I'll call you later.'_ That done, she finally asked out loud. "Seeing as how your car was destroyed, may I offer you a police escort home Mr. Wayne?"

"That would be fine, thank you." Bruce turned then to glance at the two teenagers standing behind him. "Terry, David, let's be going. Commissioner Gordan has kindly offered us a ride back to my house. You can call your guardians on the way." _Besides_, he added silently, _I'm sure Mrs. McGinnis is a very unhappy mother right now._ He wanted to leave before she decided to show up. The last thing that he wanted to do was deal with an angry mother.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Mary McGinnis was indeed a very unhappy mother. She had proceeded to give her eldest son the once over as soon as she picked up the phone. It had taken Terry ten minutes of reassuring and five more minutes of pleading before he finally convinced her not to go charging straight to Wayne Manor.

David himself had an easier time with his uncle. He had only spoken for a few minutes before promising to be home by eight o'clock. Other than that, the three passengers were silent all the way back to the large mansion on the hill.

At least, until Ace saw them. He immediately growled at the sight of David.

"Ace, quiet," Bruce ordered. "He's a friend." The dog quieted down and trotted peacefully at his master's side. However, he still cast a warning glare at David every now and then.

"Nice dog," David muttered.

"Not really," Terry answered. Bruce smirked quietly up in the front. Why had that sounded so familiar? He had not so politely dismissed their police escorts as soon as they arrived at the main gate. The three young officers had insisted on staying...at least until Bruce had glowered icily at them.

The trio walked silently up into the house, with David lagging slightly behind Terry. He was finding the colossal house to be very intimidating.

"Mr. Wayne," David asked hesitantly. "How exactly did you..." A pair of stony blue eyes looked back at him and he shut up. The silent teenager continued to follow after the strange pair until they halted in front of an old clock.

"Are you sure about this Bruce?" Terry finally asked, eyeing David discreetly out of the corner of his eyes.

"He's Iris's son and Wally's grandson. He'll be fine." David gave another start at that. Had Mr. Wayne actually known them? He must have, otherwise he wouldn't have addressed them so familiarly. The now curious teenager watched as the aging billionaire reached up and pulled down a hidden lever.

David's eyes widened as a hidden door swung open to reveal a secret passage.

"Whoa," he muttered. Terry grinned at him then.

"Just wait until you see what's inside," he said. David looked at him curiously before following the strange pair down a set of stone steps. He halted suddenly in surprise as he caught sight of the contents in the dark cave.

**"WHOA."**

Terry flashed him an _'I told you so'_ look before sticking out a hand.

"Welcome to our world David," he said, echoing Bruce's earlier words to him. David stared first at him and then at Bruce as he absentmindedly shook Terry's offered hand.

"You...you're Batman," he stuttered as he stared at the old man. But he was too old to be the current caped crusader, which meant...

...Which meant that Delinquent was also Batman.

"Mr. Kae," Bruce commanded, forcing a stunned David out of his thoughts. "I want to know the complete truth. **Now**."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Are you okay Clark?"

Clark Kent looked up to see an anxious Aqua Girl hovering near him. The poor girl, with her father missing she seemed to have unofficially adopted him as a father figure.

"I'm fine," he assured her. _Bruce is going to kill me_, he moaned silently. His friend had warned him about eavesdropping on Luther. Oh yes, Bruce might physically be older than him, but that wouldn't save him from the billionaire's wrathful temper.

The Kryptonian stood up and began to button on a civilian shirt. There appeared to be no major damage from the weapon discharge. He was on his way out of the infirmary when the faint dialogue of a far away television caught his sensitive ears.

_"...Gotham police aren't certain as to the cause of the explosion, however, foul play has not been ruled out. Miraculously though, the three passengers, billionaire Bruce Wayne, his young aide, Terry McGinnis, and another teenager, David Kae, survived without the slightest scratch..."_

Clark followed the direction of the sound until he was staring wordlessly at the screen. A grim faced War Hawk and Static were watching the news as well.

The smoking wreckage of Bruce's car lay in the background as a group of reporters attempted to interview Bruce, which was a futile attempt as Clark had long ago learned. Having given up on the old man, the reporters had turned to trying to talk to the teenagers. Terry brushed them off as Clark would expect. He didn't a good look at the other teenager, other than a flash of red hair. The young man was too busy trying to discreetly hide from the cameras behind Terry.

"I'm sure my mom's freaking out about now," Rex Stewart muttered.

"Shayera freaks out?" Virgil asked curiously.

"Let me rephrase that, she's probably trying to find her mace right now."

The Kryptonian narrowed his eyes and ignored the other two men as he silently watched the news for a few more minutes. Anger began to rise in him as he recalled his earlier encounter with Luthor.

_"I do know that two...associates of yours in Gotham are poking their noses into my business. And I don't appreciate it."_

Luthor.

Perhaps he'd better give Bruce a call.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"My dad and Uncle Barry died about a month before my mom did," David said. "And my Grandma, Linda West, died not long after."

"Yes, I know," Bruce answered. "What I want to know is how _you_ survived. Your mother was about five months pregnant with you as I recall."

The three of them were sitting around the computer console down in the batcave. Bruce was in his chair, with Ace laying at his faithfully at his feet. Terry and David were both seated on the floor by the dog.

"I...was removed surgically from my mom about three weeks before she died."

"At five months?" Terry asked suddenly. "Isn't that too early?" Bruce hushed him with a glance before he leaned toward the other young man intently.

"Is Amanda Waller the one that helped have you removed?" he asked.

"I...I don't know," David admitted. "Uncle Evan never really told me. I know I was removed early because my mom was afraid she'd lose me. I'm not really sure who she went to, but about seven months after she died, some lady gave me to my uncle to be raised."

"But your uncle's not really your uncle, is he?" Bruce asked.

"No sir, Uncle Evan's my dad's second cousin. A month after my mom was killed by Grodd, he got a call from this lady. I don't know what her name was. Several months after that, she showed up with me at his house."

Bruce sat silently for a time as he regarded the young man in front of him. It must have been Waller; no one else could have pulled this off without his knowledge. Even so, why hadn't he looked more into Iris's death? He should have at least suspected it.

Iris had still appeared to be with child when she had died. Waller must have somehow faked the continued pregnancy to protect the boy.

Terry stared in fascinated amazement at David as he thought about this new turn of events.

"Your mom was killed by who?" he asked. He'd never heard of Grodd before.

"Grodd," David said. "But I don't really know the full story. In fact, I don't even really know how my _grandpa_ died." Bruce's eyes softened a fraction at that as he turned back to the computer console. Within seconds, he'd brought up an image of a strange looking gorilla.

"Your parents were both killed by Grodd, as you know. As also were your uncle and grandmother. But you don't really know why, do you?" Bruce asked.

"No sir," David answered. "I'm not really sure what Grodd was."

"Grodd was a super intelligent gorilla that had been exiled from Gorilla City."

"Gorilla City?" Terry asked. He was starting to get intrigued.

"It's a hidden city in Africa of an advanced race of gorillas," Bruce answered. "Grodd had been exiled from there. The Justice League battled him a few times. Grodd despised all of us, but he had a special hatred for Wally."

"Why?" David asked.

"Because Grodd had the mind of a genius and your grandfather, shall we say, was never the most intellectually gifted person. This fact made Grodd's defeat at the hands of Wally all the more unbearable. Of all the members of the League, Wally was the one he targeted the most. However, your grandfather always managed to defeat him in the end. Grodd found out your mother's true identity and killed her and the rest of your family out of revenge."

David sat quietly as he stared at the picture up on the computer screen.

"What happened to Grodd?" he finally asked. The lines around Bruce's eyes tightened as he turned back to the computer.

"Superman killed him," he answered quietly. Terry and David stared up at the old man, but he refused to say more. Bruce was spared further questioning when his cell phone rang. He could see from the caller ID that it was none other than Clark himself.

_"Bruce, I know who was behind your attack."_ Bruce's eyes flickered down to the teenagers before looking back up.

"Luthor?" he asked.

_"Yes, and Bruce...she knows who you are. She even knew my name."_ Bruce's eyes narrowed slightly as he listened to Clark explain what happened.

"You charged her even though she had kryptonite? That was stupid, even for you..." David's eyebrows shot up at the mention of kryptonite. Was he...was he talking to Superman?

_"She was talking about Jon,"_ Clark protested. Bruce briefly rubbed his eyebrows as he listened to his friend. Jonathan Bruce Kent, Clark's dead son, was a sensitive subject for the Kryptonian.

"Of all the stupid, idiotic..." Bruce started to say.

_"You can yell at me later Bruce, now's not a good time. Did you come up with anything?"_

Bruce looked down at a wide-eyed David and wondered if he should continue. The boy may be Wally's grandson, but he was still a stranger. A pair of gray eyes locked with his and after a moment, Bruce nodded slightly in approval.

There was a quiet maturity in those gray eyes that Wally had lacked at that age.

"Luthor has the same political objectives that Lex did. I also believe she wants to resurrect Cadmus. Derek Powers may also have been involved with it before he died, but I have yet to figure out how," he admitted. There was a pause at the other end of the line.

_"Have you contacted Amanda Waller yet?"_ Clark asked. Bruce's eyes hardened at that.

"Not yet," he answered. "But I will. Waller and I have several other things to discuss as well."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Alexandra Luthor tapped her chin with a long fingernail as she studied the computer screen. Wayne and McGinnis had survived, had they? Unfortunate. It was unlike Chameleon to botch one of his jobs. Wayne would be even more on his guard now, but even so...

How had they survived?

One moment they had both been in the car and the next they had been halfway down the street. The old Justice League Watchtower had been equipped with transporters, but they had always been only partially reliable at best. Had Wayne improved the technology?

There had been another passenger in the car as well, a teenager by the name of David Kae. Luther had done a background check on him, but it had revealed nothing spectacular.

The boy's parents had died in an accident when he was a baby and he had been adopted by a distant relative. The teenager had grown up in St. Anthony, Iowa and had recently transferred from Cornell High School to Hamilton Hill High in Gotham City. He was also classmate of Terry McGinnis.

As she had said, nothing extraordinary.

Then why had he been alone with Bruce Wayne and Terry McGinnis? She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something about his face seemed oddly familiar.

She had the unpleasant feeling that an unwanted variable had been thrown into her plans. No matter. The boy should prove no threat. If he did, then he could be eliminated as well.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Fernand Debray gave a cocky grin as he sauntered up the green skinned metahuman down the hall. The other man noticed him coming and shot him a cold glare. Sharp green eyes glinted dangerously underneath a shock of long blonde hair as Debray approached.

"I hear dat you failed t'kill off Wayne, Monsieur Chameleon. Such a shame," the European taunted. "Perhaps Mademoiselle Luthor will give de next job t'me. Talent such as mine should be…"

A rough hand gripped him by the throat and shoved him up against the wall. Chameleon's gold trimmed white garments blazed brightly in the light filled hallway as he brought Debray's face up to his. The metahuman smirked darkly as he shape shifted into an image of Luthor.

"Enough of your tongue idiot," Chameleon warned. "I know that you desire my _'sister'_, but know this. If you try anything on her, I'll gut you. That is, if she doesn't do it first." He shape shifted back to his normal appearance as Debray's cybernetic arm transformed into a plasma gun. The green skinned man only squeezed his neck harder.

"If you cross me again," the metahuman warned. "I will kill you…and Alexandra won't stop me."

Debray painfully gulped in gasps of air as Chameleon finally dropped him onto the floor. The French man glared hatefully at the other man's back as he turned and walked away. This was far from over.


	7. Legacies

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

_Author's Note: _

_David doesn't really appear in this chapter, but don't worry. He'll be back._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 7: Legacies**

_Amanda Waller stared down at the tiny baby before her. She hesitated a moment before reaching down and brushing the soft down of red hair._

_The child's mother was dead. Grodd had made certain of that._

_Waller had been afraid this would happen. The child's father, uncle, and grandmother had supposedly died in an accident. But she knew better. That was why she had pestered Iris West for weeks on end until the woman finally gave in. Amanda had immediately gone into action and had the baby removed by Caesarian section._

_Now she was glad she had._

_Ever since Wally had disappeared into the speed force nearly seven years ago, Iris had been the one to take up the Flash mantle. Sadly, Wally's son Barry West, who had always been a bit lazy, had wanted nothing to do with the legacy. Now they were all dead, with the exception of one tiny baby._

_The boy whimpered softly in his sleep and Amanda resisted the temptation to pick him up. She had never been good with children. Many people in fact would hardly equate her with motherhood. But in the last few months she had grown very fond of the boy. She had recently even begun to find herself harboring thoughts of raising the child herself._

_But that would never do._

_"You're going to have a new father in a few weeks Sugar," she murmured. She had found a relative of the boy that should do quite nicely as a surrogate parent. The boy yawned in his sleep and Amanda found herself thinking of another boy child that had been born a few weeks ago._

'_Project Batman Beyond' had been successful._

_Terrence McGinnis, son of Warren and Mary McGinnis...secretly the child of Bruce Wayne. Amanda secretly referred to the boy in her mind as Terrence Wayne._

_She looked down at the boy sleeping below her._

_Iris had named her child David Wallace Cullen. Unfortunately, that wouldn't do either. Too many people now knew the true identity of the Flash. When the boy reached the hands of his "uncle", he would be known as David Michael Kae. Michael had been her father's name; it was a good name._

_Terry and David, two legacies preserved._

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

_"Stop pretending to be angry Bruce. Had I done nothing, the boy would have died with his mother,"_ Amanda Waller argued. A pair of stony blue eyes regarded her through the computer screen.

"I'm not angry about that and you know it Waller," Bruce said. "Why didn't you tell anyone what you did?"

_"And who would have taken the boy in? You? Clark?"_ she countered.

"That's not the point."

_"I think it is. At the time of his...birth, you had already barricaded yourself well within the walls of your mansion. And don't even get me started on Clark. It wasn't until Terry came along that you finally came out of your shell."_

"Yes, Terry. Yet another topic we need to discuss."

_"We discussed it, remember? I told you the truth about him the night after he first stole your batsuit."_

Bruce glared at Waller. The night after Terry had returned the batsuit, Bruce had already been contemplating the possibility that he might carry on the legacy. Then Waller had called and told him about her "project." That boy had been his son. His _son_.

_"You have two sons because of me Bruce,"_ she said.

"It was unethical. You had no right."

_"So you're saying that you wish Terry and Matt had never been born?"_

Silence. Then, "That's not what I said." Bruce and Amanda stared at each other for several tense moments.

_"Does Terry know?"_ she finally asked.

"No."

_"You should..."_

"And tell him what?" Bruce argued. "That he was born to replace me? Terry needs to believe that he's worthy of that mask because of his character, not his blood, because that's the truth."

_"Bruce..."_

"You know all the trouble he's gotten into Waller. If he thinks that it was genetics only that makes him Batman, he'll lose his confidence." _Not to mention that he won't trust me._

Amanda sighed.

_"Your choice Bruce, but he'll figure it out eventually. He may not have your brilliant mind but the kid's not stupid," _she warned.

"I know. But I don't want him to know that I'm really his father. Not yet." _If ever._ He watched as Amanda took a sip of tea before looking at him expectantly.

_"You didn't call me just to talk about the boys. You had something else in mind,"_ she stated.

"Luthor."

_"I don't have the kind of leverage in the government that I used to have Bruce. But I do still have a few contacts."_

"And..." Bruce started.

_"You know what she wants. Luthor wants to resurrect Cadmus. I'm not sure how, but she's managed to confiscate about fifty-three percent of our old files."_

"What about Derek Powers? How did he get access to Cadmus information?" he asked.

"_His aunt was a former employee. Apparently she had smuggled some data out before we disbanded. But as far as I can tell, the stolen information that she took only held information on our cloning program, nothing else."_

"And Debray? Do you know anything about him?"

_"Nothing that you don't know. It's possible that some of his cybernetics are in fact old Cadmus tech and not Luthor Corp."_

"Luthor tried to kill us earlier. And not only that, she knows who we are. She called Clark by his name." Amanda's eyes narrowed at that and she set down her tea cup.

_"If she's been digging into the old Cadmus files, there's no telling what she knows Bruce. In fact, I've been doing some digging myself. Luthor's hiding something, something big. But I don't know what it is. If I find out anything, I'll let you know."_

"The Justice League will check it out. Good night Waller."

_"Wait, Bruce...one more thing,"_ Amanda added. Bruce raised a questioning eyebrow as she picked something off the floor.

_"I'd been anticipating your call. I knew it was only a matter of time before you met David, seeing as he's in Terry's class. I have something for him, something that might be useful."_ Waller held up a scarlet red garment in her hands and Bruce's eyes widened a fraction in recognition.

"I see you've been busy," he said dryly.

_"If the boy's willing and capable Bruce, you might consider his help. He comes from good stock,"_ Amanda said. Bruce eyed the clothing in her hands.

"Yes, he does," Bruce admitted. "I'll consider it. Send it over."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

_"Out with it Ter, are you going to tell me or what?"_ Max asked. Terry had called her some time around midnight. His friend had immediately peppered him with question after question.

"Okay, fine. It's about David," Terry said.

_"What about him? Why was the old man so interested in him?"_

"You sitting down?"

_"Yeah, why?"_ she asked. Terry smirked beneath his cowl as he flew the car past Gotham State University.

"Bruce knew his mom and granddad. He's worked with them before. Well, at least with his grandpa anyway."

_"Worked with them? You mean in Wayne Enterprises or..."_

"The League," Terry answered. There was a pause, then...

_"No. Way."_

"Yes way." There was another pause and Terry could feel the rush of excitement on the other end.

_"Who? Who was..."_ she started excitedly.

"David's grandpa was the Flash, so was his mom," Terry answered. He could almost see Max's jaw dropping on the other end.

_"Are you serious? Does that mean he..."_

"Has superspeed? Oh yeah."

_"Tell me everything,"_ Max demanded. _"Now."_ Terry automatically shook his head, even though she couldn't see him.

"Not now Max, I'm busy. I've got to finish my patrol and get home before my mom kills me. I'll tell you everything later."

_"How do you expect me to sleep after telling me that and not finish the story?"_

"Try really really hard?" he asked innocently.

_"Very funny Ter."_

"I try. Night Max."

"_Goodnight Ter."_

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"That's checkmate War Hawk. The kid wins again."

"Shut up Static. I let him win."

"Sure."

Rex Stewart glared at the chess board in front of him. The young Tibetan across from him, the newest Green Lantern, smiled innocently back. The older man muttered darkly to himself. He couldn't even count the number of times that he'd lost to his mother.

"Aren't you tired of losing yet Stewart?" Virgil taunted.

"Shut up old man!"

"This old man can still kick your half-Thanagarian butt."

Kairo, the young Tibetan, wisely took this moment to bow politely and retreat. Sometimes he wondered at the sanity of the older members of the League. Then again, sometimes he even questioned the sanity of Terry McGinnis.

"Hah, I could beat you at basketball any day of the week Stewart!"

"And what do you call last Friday? It sure looked like you losing to me."

"That was different. You had help," Virgil protested.

"What the…my dad's older than you! It's not like he can play that well anymore," Rex pointed out.

"Yeah, but John's still good at trash talking."

A sudden beeping from the League's computer drew the two men out of their bantering and into business. Static Shock reached out and pressed a few keys until a large, three-dimensional map formed above the console.

"Looks like there's some trouble down by the Big Apple," Virgil commented. "You want to go? You know the area better than I do."

Rex Stewart grabbed his helmet off the table and placed it on his head. He took one look at the computer before heading to the door. It was time to go to work.


	8. Faces of the Past

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

_Author's Note: I'd like to thank Spin-Firestorm for her wonderful ideas. Thanks. I'd been toying with similar ideas, but yours sounded a little bit better, so I'll see what I can incorporate into the story. And thanks to all of you for your reviews. I'm glad you like it. I really do wish that there was a David in the future JLU/Batman Beyond storyline._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 8: Faces of the Past**

"So, are you going to give it to him?"

Bruce looked up from studying the red costume in front of him to eye Barbara Gordon. The Commissioner, true to her word, had paid Bruce a visit after having seen David. She and Bruce had spent the last twenty minutes discussing the teenager over a cup of coffee. The old man had shown her Amanda Waller's "gift" a few minutes ago.

"No," he said firmly. Barbara raised an eyebrow and Bruce continued. "I never forced any of you, not even Terry. David must make the choice on his own. If, _if, _he decides to become the Flash, then I'll give it to him."

There was silence for a time. They both eyed the red Flash suit on the table between them, each enveloped in their own thoughts. Bruce painfully recalled his last conversation with Wally.

…………………………….

"_You need to be more careful Bruce," Wally warned. "You're getting old. You're going to get hurt." _

"_I'm fine," Bruce answered shortly. He didn't like being reminded of his mortality. Wally stared at him for a moment before shrugging his shoulders and cracking one of his famous grins._

"_Okay, fine," Wally said. "Just remember one thing when we're both old, wrinkled and gray. Especially when you're chasing me down the hall of the nursing home." Bruce raised an eyebrow._

"_And what's that?" he asked dryly._

"_I'm the Fastest Man Alive!"_

…………………………

_Except that you're not Wally, _Bruce thought. _Not any more._ _I'm old, wrinkled, and gray, white even…but you're not. You're not here._

Bruce looked down at the scarlet red costume in front of him. _I promise Wally. I'll do what ever I can to protect David._

"Bruce." Bruce shook himself out of his thoughts and looked up at Barbara. She smiled slightly and reached over to touch his hand.

"I miss him too," she said quietly.

"I should have looked more into Iris's death," he muttered. "I should have suspected…"

"You're human Bruce. No one could have known."

"It doesn't matter. I should have known," he repeated stubbornly. Barbara sighed.

"Bruce…stop beating yourself over the head. The point is that you know _now_. Use the opportunity that has been placed in front of you. He's going to want to know more about his family."

Bruce said nothing as he picked up the Flash mask. He slid his finger over one of the yellow lightning bolts.

"Bruce," Barbara said suddenly. A sly grin crossed her face.

"What?" Bruce asked suspiciously. Barbara grinned again and leaned forward with a conspiratorial glint in her eyes.

"Don't you have one of Wally's old suits?" she asked. Bruce took a sip of coffee.

"I think you have me mistaken with Dick," he answered. "He took one of Wally's old costumes after he died."

"So did you," Barbara countered. "It's not hanging down with our costumes in the cave, but I know you have it." Bruce raised an eyebrow, as if to ask '_How did you know about that?'_

"What's on your mind Barbara?" he asked instead.

"Let Terry find Wally's old suit. I'll bet you a free dinner that he shows it to David."

Bruce thought about that. Even if David decided not to become the Flash, he still deserved to know more about his family. Wally's suit could be a very good place to start. The old man gave a curt nod and Barbara grinned.

"What about his uncle?" she suddenly asked.

"I'm planning to call him," Bruce answered. "I'm sure that David has told him what happened. If I was his guardian, I know that _I _would have pulled everything out of him. I'd like to meet Evan Kae."

"You know," Barbara said quietly. "If he becomes the Flash, there's no way he can hide it from his uncle. Evan Kae might say no the idea." Bruce took a long sip of coffee before choosing an answer.

"That remains to be seen," he finally said. "First of all, David might decide _not _to become the Flash. If does decide yes, then we'll deal with the next step." Barbara nodded her head in agreement. That was about all they could do. She knew that if she had an eighteen-year old son, she sure as hell wouldn't want him running around in a mask and tights. She took another sip of coffee before looking around curiously.

"Bruce, where's Terry? It's a Saturday. Isn't he usually on duty?"

"He's doing homework," Bruce answered. "At least, he'd BETTER be."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Terry carefully folded a paper airplane and took aim at the red head sitting on the couch. He carefully waited until David turned to look at the chocolate skinned girl on the chair before throwing his paper missile. The young speedster ducked expertly out of the way.

"Terry!" Max yelled. Terry grinned innocently, at least until his paper airplane came flying back and whacked him in the head.

"Oww!" he yelped.

"David!" Max yelled this time. David flashed her a look of angelic innocence. Max rubbed her forehead and tried to hide a smirk. It didn't work and a few giggles slipped out.

"She's thinks we're funny," Terry commented.

"She thinks you're funny looking," David retorted.

"Yeah…hey!" Terry threw his pen at the young speedster. Which, of course, missed and bounced off the wall.

"S..stop it…" Max laughed. "We're trying to study, remember?" The three teenagers looked at each other and sighed. They picked their chemistry books back up. It wasn't long though until the trio got sidetracked again.

"Hey Ter," David said. "Does Dana know that you're Batman?"

"Uh…not really…" Terry mumbled.

"He means no," Max answered. "I keep having to make up excuses for him whenever he's late for a date."

"Why not? Why doesn't she know?" David asked curiously. "She's your girlfriend."

"It's too dangerous," Terry protested.

"Max knows."

"I didn't tell her. She found out on her own," Terry answered. Max beamed proudly as David gave her a curious look.

"How'd you do that?" he asked her.

"She's a stalker," Terry grinned. Max whipped around to glare at him.

"No I'm not!" she protested.

"I don't know, 'Student most likely to lead a double life?' Sure looks that way to me."

"I'm NOT a STALKER!"

"Yeah, sure," Terry quipped. "You love me, you want to marry me…" She threw a pillow at his head. Terry caught it and threw it back. This soon escalated into a pillow fight, which caused the three to forget about their homework again.

After a few minutes, they settled down and went back to work…only to be distracted again ten minutes later.

"Hey Dave, does your uncle know what happened?" Terry asked. David gave a sheepish look as he answered.

"Yeah," he admitted. "I couldn't hide it from him. He made me tell him everything." David had such a chagrined look on his face that Terry rushed to reassure him.

"Hey, don't worry about it. Bruce figured that you'd have to tell him."

"Yeah," Max added. "Besides, if he's raised you all these years, I think the old man knows that your uncle won't tell anyone about them." David gave a small sigh of relief. He'd been worried about what Terry and Bruce would say about that.

"You sure Mr. Wayne's not mad?" he asked, just to make sure.

"Naw, but he's probably called your uncle by now." A new wave of anxiety washed over David. Bruce Wayne, calling his uncle? Should he be worried about that? David asked that and Terry laughed.

"He just wants to meet him, that's all. Don't worry about it."

"If you say so," David answered doubtfully. Terry grinned as he pulled a notebook out of his school bag.

"It'll be fine. Anyway, can I copy your English paper?" he asked.

"Terry!" Max yelled. "Batman's not supposed to cheat!" She threw another pillow at Terry, which resulted in yet another pillow war.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Evan Kae set down the telephone. After hearing David's story, he had been expecting the call from Bruce Wayne. The two men had talked for several minutes before Evan had finally invited him over the next day for dinner.

He was a little apprehensive about it. Would the old man try to talk David into becoming a superhero? No. Something about Bruce Wayne made him think that he wouldn't do that.

Not that he was totally against the boy becoming the Flash. But what parent would be happy to see his child in harm's way? Yes, it was David's decision if he ever decided to become the Flash, but it was Evan's personal hope that he'd at least wait a few more years.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Rex Stewart cursed loudly as he twisted in mid air to avoid a shot from a plasma gun. Where the hell had common criminals received such advanced weaponry? These were even more high tech than the standard US Government issued GS 42's issued in the military.

He swooped around one of the high rise buildings and dove down to a trio of the instigators. The half-Thanagarian crashed into the three and sent them flying towards a line of policemen.

Three down.

Luckily for him, the ragged group was undisciplined. They clearly had no training in the weapons they were firing. Rex avoided another barrage as he made his way towards another small group.

What were they after? The group had formed outside a small government facility, but they had made no attempt to enter. In fact, they seemed more content with just causing general chaos. The answer clicked in Rex's mind and he swooped toward the building.

Stupid him. It had to be a diversion.

A flash of bright light caught him off guard, right before something slammed into him. A weapons discharge…

Rex crashed back into a nearby building. Damn it. Who had…a dark shape immerged from the building and he gasped. Impossible. That was who had shot him? But he was supposed to be dead!

He gaped in shock as the form of Grodd smirked across the plaza at him. The huge gorilla smirked at him and fired another shot. Rex avoided it, but another blast from behind knocked him down.

How? How? Clark killed him!

Rex struggled up again, but found that Grodd had disappeared. What the…where could a huge gorilla have gone? He winced as he stood back up. Some of his ribs must have been broken. He turned around, but whoever had shot him the second time had disappeared.

"_War Hawk? What's the problem?"_

War Hawk reached up to touch the radiolink in his ear. He painfully took to the air, but he could see nothing of Grodd.

"Static, I just saw Grodd." There was a pause.

"_WHAT?"_

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Chameleon smirked as watched from the shadows. Good, so War Hawk had believed his little charade. The metahuman had morphed into Grodd's form on purpose. Yes, he could have transformed into anyone, he had even considered transforming into the Humanite. But the form of Grodd should cause the Justice League panic enough.

He could sense War Hawk's rising alarm from where he stood. Good.

His green eyes scanned the horizon, but he could see nothing of Jon-El. The young man had blasted War Hawk from behind, from within the shadows. Alex must have sent him for back up, not that he needed any. Chameleon smiled to himself.

Jon-El was the clone of Superman's dead son. He couldn't wait until the two finally met.

The metahuman stepped through a wall and transformed into the shape of a police woman. He calmly walked down the street and a confused mass of people milled around him. Alex was going to be pleased.


	9. Vanishing Point

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 9: Vanishing Point**

"Grodd? Are you sure that's who you saw?"

"Yes Mom," Rex answered impatiently. Shayera crossed her arms as she and the others listened to his story. Clark had called an informal meeting the next day in Metropolis after hearing Rex's report. Now he, the Stewarts, and Virgil were gathered around a large round table in the boardroom.

"It couldn't be Grodd," Clark said quietly. "I killed him, remember? It was about seventeen, eighteen years ago. Red Tornado was with me, he remembers it too."

"A clone maybe?" John suggested. "Or maybe it was a relative."

"I don't know," Rex admitted. "All I know is that he looked like Grodd."

"Whatever the truth is, I don't like it," Shayera said.

Clark rested his chin in his hands as he reluctantly thought back to eighteen years ago. He had killed Grodd, he knew he did. He'd done it after….after Grodd had murdered the West family. It wasn't a very pleasant memory. He was glad that Wally hadn't lived to see it.

"It could even have been a hologram," Virgil pointed out. "Richie could make one with his eyes closed."

"I agree with Shayera. Whatever it is," Clark said. "I don't like it. If Luthor's gotten a hold of old CADMUS files like Bruce says, then there's no telling what you saw."

"Who's on monitoring duty now?" Virgil asked suddenly.

"Zaranna, why?" the Kryptonian asked. Zaranna was Zatanna's daughter. The beautiful, blue eyed brunette was very intelligent…and more than a little quick tempered.

"Luthor's been after Cadmus information, hasn't she?"

"Yes, but Waller's got the rest of it under lock and key," Clark answered.

"Exactly," Virgil said quietly. There was a long pause.

"Oh Lord," Clark muttered. He rubbed his eyebrows, suddenly feeling very tired. _Dammit, if only J'onn was still here. _That was wishful thinking of course. He and Kara disappeared around the same time that Wally had died, although their bodies had never been found.

"Do you think she's brazen enough to go after Waller?" John asked.

"She's a Luthor John," Shayera reminded him. "She's already tried to kill Bruce and Terry."

"And since she's already tried that once, there's a good chance she'll try it again," Rex pointed out. The others looked at each other gravely before John reached for his cell phone. Of course, knowing Bruce, he had already figured this all out.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Terry opened the door to the bat cave and stopped when he heard Bruce's voice. After a moment, he realized that the old man was talking to someone on the phone.

"I know that," he heard Bruce say. "And I'm sure that Waller does too." There was another pause as the old man listened to the phone.

"Somehow I doubt that Waller will go for that John," Bruce said. Terry walked silently down the steps, so as not to disturb his mentor. Ace looked up at him and wagged his tail briefly before looking back at his master.

Bruce looked over at him before pacing again in front of the glass case of costumes. He paused in front of the Nightwing costume as he listened to John Stewart. His eyes narrowed suddenly and his left hand tightened briefly on his case.

"Are you sure that's who Rex saw?" Bruce listened for a moment. "I agree with Clark, there's no way that it was him. It was most likely a clone or an illusion…or even a shapeshifter." Another long pause.

"Lex was involved with the Injustice League John. Knowing Luthor, his daughter has access to his old connections. J'onn was hardly the only shapeshifter that existed. However, I'm more inclined to believe that it was a clone or an illusion."

Terry listened curiously as he bent down to scratch Ace's ears. A strange box caught his eye over by the display case and he walked over to investigate. He felt a flash of excitement as he saw the old scarlet costume lying inside of it.

Bruce watched him out of the corner of his eye as the teenager carefully pulled Wally's old costume out of the box. Terry held it in front of him and stared in somber fascination at the worn and slightly frayed suit. The left sleeve and sections of the torso had been torn at one time, but had since been sewn carefully up. Bruce must have fixed it.

"Fine," he said curtly. "Just make sure that none of you do anything stupid," he warned John. Then he pressed a button and ended the conversation. Bruce stared in distaste at the phone before walking over to join Terry.

"I haven't looked at that for a long time," Bruce admitted. Terry glanced at him before laying the suit back down in the box. He then picked up the mask and held it up to the light.

"How come it's not with the other costumes?" he asked. A stony expression from Bruce was all the answer he needed. _It was probably hurts too much, _he realized.

Terry had become very good at reading Bruce's thoughts.

"Who was that?" Terry asked instead.

"John Stewart."

Bruce went on to explain the contents of their conversation. Terry listened quietly, with a serious expression on his face. The old man marveled briefly at how much, in many instances, that the teenager resembled him.

"So what are they going to do?" Terry questioned.

"Clark seems to think that Waller needs a bodyguard." Terry looked over at him and caught the expression on his face.

"You don't seem to have a high opinion on that," Terry observed dryly. The old man's lips gave an amused twitch as he answered.

"Waller won't go for it. She'll most likely tell Kent to go to hell."

"Do you think she's really in danger?" Terry asked. Bruce walked over to his chair and sat down. Ace obediently followed him and sat down by the chair. The old man automatically reached down to pet him as he answered.

"Yes," Bruce finally answered. "But Luthor's not going to want her dead. She wants the information that she has on Cadmus." The old man looked up from the dog to give the teenager an impassive look.

"Did you read the files that I gave you?" he asked.

"Yeah," Terry answered. Bruce had given him old files on Cadmsu to read. The old man nodded before turning to his computer.

"I have an appointment to go to in an hour. Meanwhile, I have a simulation that I want you to run." Sometimes Bruce would create simulations out of his old cases for Terry to work on. Having good fighting skills was important, but having a sharp mind was even more crucial if the boy was going to be Batman.

Bruce opened up one of his programs before standing up. Terry sank into the chair and began to read the case files.

"Lex Luthor, huh?" he asked.

"It gets more interesting," Bruce said. The old man had purposely chosen an old case involving Luthor. He turned and was on his way up the stairs when Terry suddenly called out to him.

"Hey…Bruce?"

Bruce paused and looked down at the teenager. Terry paused before looking over at the open box on the table.

"Can I show that to David? I mean, it…" Bruce nodded at him and the boy grinned. The old man eyed the box before starting back up the stairs. He had an important appointment to keep.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Amanda Waller glared at the computer screen in front of her. _Damn that witch…_

It was severely irritating her that Luthor had managed to get her hands on so much of her old program. What was even more infuriating was the fact that old members of Cadmus must have leaked much of the information to Alexandra.

No doubt they had received a substantial financial reward for it.

The old woman bypassed a security program as she hacked into LexCorps's computer database. Damn that whelp, she'd show Luthor who she was messing with.

You didn't bait a Cobra and expect it not to strike.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"How do you like your coffee Mr. Wayne?" Evan Kae asked. The forty-seven year old architect held up a pot of coffee. His brown eyes studied Bruce carefully.

"I like it plain, thank you. You may call me Bruce by the way."

Evan nodded and sat down next to the old man. David flitted back and forth restlessly between the living room and the kitchen. Bruce hid a rare smile; Wally had done the same thing when he was nervous.

"David, pick a spot and sit down!" Evan finally yelled. "You're giving me a headache!" The teenager reluctantly zipped into the living room and perched himself on one of the armchairs. A distant look crossed Bruce's eyes as a forgotten memory returned to him.

"_Wally!" John yelled furiously. "I can't take it anymore! Sit down!" Wally zipped over to the board table and sat down._

"_I swear," the Green Lantern muttered. "You enjoy giving me a headache." Wally only grinned at him in reply._

"It must have been interesting to raise him," Bruce observed. A wry look crossed the other man's face as eyed his nephew.

"You have no idea," Evan said.

"Hey!" David yelled.

Bruce smirked to himself. The indignant young man sounded no different than a young Wally. Evan chuckled lightly as he turned to the old man at his side.

"I need to finish dinner," he said. "But if you don't mind, I'm sure that David would like to hear more about his family. I'm afraid I don't have the answers he needs." The two men exchanged looks and Bruce nodded. He could tell from Evan's face that he wanted to speak privately with Bruce later.

Evan left and Bruce looked over at David. He could only imagine the hundreds of questions that must be rolling around in that young mind. The teenager fidgeted for a few moments, another trait that he shared with Wally, before he finally posed his first question.

"How did Grandpa die?" he asked. Bruce studied him for a long moment before setting down his cup. He'd had an idea that this might be one of his first questions.

"Wally died about seven years before you were born. At that time, the League was fighting someone known as the Key."

"The Key?"

"Yes, in fact, the League had battled him many times before. But this time, he had been in league with someone who called himself Solus." Bruce laced his fingers together as he looked at the young man. He could see the unspoken question on his face.

"Solus means 'alone' in Latin. He was once a Linear Man." Bruce knew that he would have to explain this one, even Terry didn't know about the Linear Men yet.

"There is a place called the Vanishing Point. It is a place that lies outside of time, yet, it is also a place where _all _time exists at once." Bruce could see the confusion on the young man's face and he continued. "I suppose you could say that the Linear Men are both historians…and guardians. They are able to access any point in the time stream that they wish. They use this ability to learn, and protect, time as we know it."

There was a long pause as David slowly digested this information. It was very confusing.

"So, this Solus guy was an ex-Linear Man?" he asked.

"Yes," Bruce answered. "He betrayed his fellow Linear Men and began to follow his own agenda. He used his ability to access time to supply advanced weaponry to people of his choosing."

"Like the Key."

"Yes."

Bruce found himself a little impressed at the young man's mind. He was grasping at this a little more easily than he had thought he would.

"Your grandfather defeated the Key in the end, but at a price. He went too fast and disappeared into the speed force." There was a long pause at that.

"I've heard about the speed force," David said quietly. "It's how someone like me can go so fast, right?"

"Yes, you subconsciously access the speed force. But if you go too fast…then this reality can no longer hold you. We were able to pull Wally back the first time he fell into it, but the second time…"

David stared down at his feet. His grandfather had been a hero, as had his mother. He wondered if he'd ever be able to measure up to them. He gave a start as Bruce suddenly jabbed his cane at his chest.

"Wha…" he started.

"_That_ is why _you _need to be careful," Bruce warned. His blue eyes pierced into the teenager's gray eyes. "If you go too fast, then you'll end up like Wally. If that happens, none of us may be able to help you. _Understand_?" Bruce leaned intently towards the boy and watched him nod slowly.

"Yes Sir," he said.

"Good," Bruce said. He took his cane away from the boy's chest. He looked towards the kitchen and could see that Evan had been watching the whole time. Evan Kae gave him a nod of approval before motioning them towards the kitchen table.

"I believe that dinner is ready," Bruce said. He walked into the kitchen, followed a moment later by a silent David.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Impossible. They were still _alive_?

Amanda Waller's heart skipped a beat as she stared at the computer screen. It had taken her a lot of work, but she had finally gotten into a heavily coded file. She felt a rush of anger as she glared hard at the computer. _That…that damnable wretched witch… _

The old woman reached for her cell phone. She needed to tell Bruce about this one.

Amanda was pressing the speed dial when a hand suddenly enclosed over it and wrenched it from her grip. She gasped as a blonde haired, green skinned man suddenly materialized in front of her. What the…

Realization hit her. This stranger had the ability to become invisible.

"Who are you? How did you get in here?" she demanded. She was quite proud of her security system. It still should have detected him, even if he could become invisible. The strange man grinned at her.

"My my, so this is the naughty lady who has been in Alex's files. She's been wanting to talk to you." His green eyes glared menacingly at her.

He gripped her hand tightly, causing her to grimace. Amanda reached underneath her chair for the weapon that she had hidden there.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Chameleon stated. "The consequences could be severe."

Dammit.

"The League will notice if I'm gone," she declared boldly. _Especially since the Boyscout thinks I need a babysitter, _she thought. Which right about now, she admitted very reluctantly, probably wouldn't have been a bad idea.

Chameleon smiled at that. He lifted her out of the chair and forced her onto her feet. Then he shapeshifted into an exact image of her.

"Oh, I don't think so," he smirked. "At least not for a while. I think you'll find that I'm quite the actor."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

_Author's Note: I don't believe that the Vanishing Point or the Linear Men have appeared in the cartoon, but I'm not totally sure. I read about them in an old issue of Superman. Solus is my own creation, but I took the idea of the V Point and the L Men directly out of The Legacy of Superman, issue #1._

_Direct quote: "Vanishing Point. A place beyond our reach where time both begins…and ends. It is a place that exists **outside **of time…and a place where all time exists at once."_

_In the issue, the Linear Men are reviewing the death of Superman._

_Oh and I totally ripped the name Zaranna off of GI Joe. Come on, Zatara, Zatanna…Zaranna, Zandar, and Zartan…it's all relative._


	10. Questions and Possibilities

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 10: Questions and Possibilities**

Amanda Waller slowly opened her eyes. A bright light penetrated into her eyelids as her vision slowly cleared. It was then that she saw the unpleasant face scrutinizing her.

Alexandra Luthor.

Waller glared dangerously at her, but said nothing. This was Lex's daughter after all…slippery as a snake. She was exactly like her father.

"It's about time we met, wouldn't you agree Waller?" Alexandra asked.

Amanda continued to glare at her. She didn't even remember losing consciousness. That last thing that she _did _remember was that blonde haired, green skinned man. He'd had the ability to become invisible, and to transform.

Wait a minute.

Waller thought back to what she had been studying from Luthor's files. A sneaking suspicious suddenly churned her stomach and she narrowed her eyes at the red haired woman in front of her.

"Tell me Luthor, does your green skinned friend happen to have Martian DNA in his genetic structure?" she demanded. A smirk rose on Luthor's face as she leaned forward towards the older woman.

"What do you think?" Alexandra asked.

"I think that you're using the old Cadmus bioengineering program. I don't appreciate it," Amanda said.

"Well that's too bad, isn't it? Such a shame. After all, of all those years collecting dust…"

"I'm warning you Luthor…"

"Enough of the tough talk Amanda. You're going to tell me more about Cadmus."

"Go to hell Luthor."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Chameleon cursed to himself as he scanned through Amanda Waller's data files. All of them were locked down. As much as he hated to admit it, the woman was a genius. He hadn't managed crack her codes yet.

"Any luck?"

The green metahuman grunted to himself before acknowledging the young half-Kryptonian clone at his side. The young man appeared to be in his early twenties, when actually, he had been "born" nearly two years ago.

"No Jon-El, I haven't," he admitted. Jon-El tilted his head and gazed curiously at the computer screen. Chameleon hid a smirk. This young man was the clone of Jonathan Kent, Clark Kent's dead son. The half-Kryptonian was dressed in normal street clothing at the moment, rather than his dark blue and silver spandex. The young man had his favorite brown leather jacket on, which he always wore, regardless of his garments.

"What's that?" Jon-El asked suddenly.

"What?"

"Back up."

Chameleon did. He had been rapidly scrolling down the page before. The metahuman found what the young man had seen seconds before.

"Project Batman Beyond? What's that?" Jon-El murmured. Chameleon wondered the same thing. His fingers danced on the keyboard, but like all the others, this file was heavily guarded as well.

"Curious," Chameleon muttered. Jon-El peered over his shoulder, but the metahuman didn't mind too much. He tolerated the young man much better than he did Debray.

"What are you going to do?"

"Nothing much now Kid. I have other files I need to break into first," Chameleon said. _That is, if I can. _Waller's files were beginning to prove nearly impossible to get into. It was at times like this that he wished he possessed more Martian DNA in his bloodstream. As it was, all he could do was sense emotions. He couldn't read people's minds. If he could, he'd have already gotten the answers they needed from Waller.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Hey, David," Terry whispered. David leaned in his direction.

"What?" he whispered back.

Terry didn't get a chance to answer right away. Their Literature teacher was now forcing Hamlet on them. As much as he hated English, even Terry had to admit that this was more interesting than The Iliad. The whole Hamlet being in love with his mother was extremely weird though.

Hamlet probably deserved to get his ass kicked.

He slipped a note under David's hand a few minutes later. The red head looked down at Mrs. Lenfesty, but she was too absorbed in talking about someone named Ophelia. David quickly opened the note underneath his desk.

_Are you doing anything after school?_

David quickly wrote a reply.

_No, why? Don't you have to work?_

Terry wrote back.

_Yeah. But there's something I want to show you over at Bruce's._

David started to write a reply, but Mrs. Lenfesty's eyes had now focused suspiciously on the two of them. They stared with sudden fascination at their textbooks. As soon as she turned her head though, David quickly nodded yes to Terry.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Clark studied the younger man in front of him, Ethan Queen, the son of the Green Arrow and Black Canary. His height was a constant source of amusement for the League. The blonde haired man hadn't inherited Ollie's height. He was a good six inches shorter.

Ethan had taken up Ollie's role as the current Green Arrow. He was doing a remarkable job of filling both of his parents' shoes.

"Ethan," Clark finally said. "I want you and Red Tornado to go check on Amanda Waller. I don't like her being alone."

Ethan gave him a mock salute. Usually he was more serious than his father, but more of Ollie's mannerisms seemed to be showing up every now and then.

"I'm on it. Want me to take a fruit basket along?" he asked.

"I don't think that's necessary," Clark said dryly. Ethan shrugged his shoulders and went off in search of Red Tornado. Green Arrow paused down the hallway before turning to yell back at Clark.

"You sure she won't miss the apples?"

"Ethan!"

Ethan shrugged his shoulders, smirked, and walked down the hallway, whistling softly to himself. Clark muttered to himself before walking back to the control room. Ethan's younger sister, Emily, was even worse when it came to acting like Oliver.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Well?" Terry asked. "What do you think?"

David stared in awe at the red suit in the box. Bruce was downstairs in the batcave, working on his computer. Terry had taken the suit up to the living room.

The red haired teenager carefully, and reverently, lifted the old Flash suit out of the box and studied it. It was strange, but he could almost _feel _his grandfather's presence in the suit. David unconsciously held the suit up to himself, causing Terry to grin.

"Hey David, put it on."

"What?" he asked in surprise.

"Do it," Terry urged.

"I don't know…" David muttered.

"Come on. You know you want to."

"You know McGinnis, according to our teachers at school, this is called peer pressure."

"So? Put it on."

David looked doubtfully down at the suit. More than anything, he actually did want to try on the suit. He just wasn't sure how Mr. Wayne would react to that. After another look at the suit however, he gave in.

"All right," he finally said. Terry grinned again in victory. He led the way upstairs. The two teenagers looked around them before finally walking into an old bedroom. A full sized mirror stood next to a long dresser.

"Geez, this room's as big as our living room," David commented. Terry flipped on the light and studied the contents of the room. He turned his head as David slipped out of his street clothes and into the costume.

Terry noticed a few books over on one of the shelves and walked over. _School Year Books? _He flipped open the first page and saw the name Tim Drake written underneath the year 2004. This must have been Tim's room.

"Well?" David asked. Terry turned around and smirked. The Flash, at least for the moment, had been reborn.

"Schway," Terry said. David zipped over to the tall mirror and inspected himself. Something about the suit made him feel stronger. The red head grinned suddenly and he turned to look at his friend.

"Hey Ter, put on your Batsuit."

Terry paused a moment before grinning. He ran downstairs, grabbed his school bag, and raced back up to the bedroom. Unknown to him, Bruce was peering curiously around the corner.

A few minutes later, Terry had his Batsuit on. The two teenagers stood side by side in front of the tall, old mirror. Neither of them said anything for a long time as they stared at their reflections.

"You know, it's weird," David finally said. "But, it's almost like I can feel my grandpa when I wear this."

"It's not weird," Terry said. David gave him a questioning look and Terry admitted a secret with some embarrassment.

"I secretly tried on Bruce's old Batsuit once. I don't think he knows, at least, I hope he doesn't. I'd never live it down. But I could definitely feel his presence inside that thing.

"Wouldn't his old Batsuit, I don't know, be a little big on you?"

"Shut up."

The two teenagers stared back at their reflections again. On impulse, for no reason at all, David suddenly struck a pose. Terry laughed, looked around, and struck an idiotic pose of his own.

"Bruce would probably have a heart attack if he saw me do this," Terry said.

"My uncle would say, 'Monkey see, monkey do'."

They snickered before growing serious again. David knew that he should probably take the Flash suit off, but he was reluctant to do so. He silently fingered the sewn up edges on the red suit.

"David, do you think you'll ever be the Flash?" Terry asked suddenly. David studied his reflection in the mirror.

"I want to," he said quietly. "But I'm worried about what my uncle will think. He's pretty protective of me, not that I blame him. And I don't want what happened to my family to happen to him."

Terry sat down on the bed as he thought about that.

"Yeah, I worry about my mom and my little brother," he admitted. "They don't know I'm Batman. Besides Bruce and members of the Justice League, Max is the only one who knows."

David sat next to him on the bed. The two teenagers stared off into space as they thought about their families.

"Does Max ever help you?" David finally asked.

"Sometimes. She's really good with computers and science. Bruce probably wishes that I had her brains. Max wants to do more, but Bruce won't let her. For once I agree with him."

"She's probably not happy about that," David said.

"Nope." A sly grin suddenly crossed Terry's face and he smirked over at the other teenager.

"You _like _her, don't you?"

"Wha…?" David asked in surprise.

"Shut up, I know you do." David's face flushed slightly in embarrassment and he suddenly became fascinated with an old baseball glove sitting on one of the shelves. Terry continued to grin at him.

"Okay, fine," David muttered. "Maybe I do."

"Ask her out," Terry suggested. "She'll go with you." David gave him a doubtful look.

"If you don't ask her," Terry continued relentlessly, "I'll do it for you."

"What? No!"

Terry gave him a victorious smirk and David pointed an accusing finger at him.

"Since when does _Batman_ play matchmaker?"

"Are you going to do it?" Terry asked.

"Yeah."

The two teenagers talked a few minutes before stripping out of the costumes. As they pulled on their street clothes, Bruce Wayne made his way silently down the hall and down the stairs. Little did he know that David would be using that same suit in the very near future.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Ethan Queen stared through the heavy, metal fence to gaze up at the huge house. Apparently Amanda Waller liked her security. And her roses.

There were dozens of rose bushes in front of the house.

"Are you ready?" he asked the other man. Red Tornado nodded his head. Ethan adjusted the quiver of arrows on his back before pressing the call button by the gate.

"Mrs. Waller? Can we come in?" he asked. There was no response. The two heroes looked at each other. Both of them knew that Amanda Waller didn't want to be disturbed. Ethan pressed the button again.

"Mrs. Waller? This is Green Arrow and Red Tornado. May we come in?" There was another long moment of silence. _Should have brought the fruit basket. _Ethan was preparing to do this the hard way when Amanda Waller's voice finally came back in reply.

"_This is Amanda. What do you want?"_


	11. Intruder

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

_Author's Note: I didn't update as quickly as I would have liked due to the fact of the hated season of midterms. Gah! I stayed up until 2 am the other day studying for one of my exams. It sure would be nice to have superspeed, studying would be so much easier._

_And also, technology hates me._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 11: Intruder**

Chameleon warily watched through the security cameras as Green Arrow and Red Tornado made their way towards the house. In order not to draw suspicion, he was going to have to play the role of Amanda Waller. This should be interesting.

"Think they'll believe you?" Jon-El asked.

"Heh, Just watch. I'll knock them dead kid."

The young man watched as his partner's sharp features melted into that of an elderly African-American woman. "Amanda Waller" smirked at him before walking to the door.

"You'd better step out of sight for now Kid," Chameleon advised. "They might become suspicious if the 'ghost' of Jonathan Kent were to be seen in here."

Jon-El stuck his hands in his pockets and wandered off into a different section of the house. He then flopped down in one of the upstairs bedrooms and waited.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"The lady's sure one for security," Ethan observed. He'd spotted several security cameras throughout the house.

"A person with Amanda Waller's past can never be too cautious," Red Tornado replied. Green Arrow said nothing in reply. He'd heard about Waller from his parents, but he'd probably only met her two or three times in his life. He did know that she wasn't going to be very happy with their visit.

"Should have brought the fruit basket," he muttered again under his breath. His companion glanced at him with some amusement before turning his attention back to the task at hand.

"Stop obsessing with the fruit basket," Tornado finally said.

"I'm not obsessing."

The taller man said nothing, but Ethan could sense his hidden amusement. He was about to protest again when he saw Amanda Waller waiting in one of the door ways. It was time for business. Even so, Ethan couldn't resist whispering one last protest.

"_I'm not obsessive._"

He saw Waller raise her eyebrow then and he realized that she must have heard him. Maybe he should listen to his mother for once and try to keep his mouth closed.

"Mrs. Waller," he greeted. "We're here to…"

"Protect me?" she asked dryly. Ethan gave a sheepish grin as he held his hand out to her. There was the briefest hesitation on her part before she reached out and shook his hand. Red Tornado nodded his head in greeting, but kept silent.

"I don't need protection," Waller said. She glared at them and Ethan responded by shrugging his shoulders.

"The Big S said to come make sure you're okay. Sooner or later, Luthor's going to come after you."

"Is that so?" she asked dryly. "We'll have to make sure that doesn't happen."

"If anyone tries anything, I'll stick an arrow through their butt," he promised. Waller raised an amused eyebrow at that. Encouraged, Ethan gave a gallant bow. His father had always taught him to be courteous to the ladies. Waller gave a smirk before turning away.

"Nice try, but I want the two of you to leave. I don't need a babysitter."

"The Boyscout's not going to be happy," Ethan said.

"The Boyscout's not my problem. Now _leave._"

Green Arrow and Red Tornado glanced at each other before they each nodded their heads slightly. Something felt wrong. Everything appeared right on the surface, but Ethan's instincts were telling him otherwise. They would come back later to investigate.

"All right," Ethan finally said. "Goodnight Mrs. Waller. Call the League if you need anything."

"I'll be fine," Waller said. "Now get out."

Ethan shrugged his shoulders as they made their way to the entrance. _Touché. _

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

The next day Terry found himself peering around his locker door at the red head down the hallway. Max had stopped by David's locker and now the two were talking.

"Terry, what are you doing?" Terry grinned at his girlfriend before pointing over at David and Max.

"David's going to ask Max out," he answered.

"So you're spying behind your locker?" Dana asked.

"Shh! I'm not…okay I am spying. But I'm making sure that he doesn't lose his nerve. The guy was kinda nervous."

Dana peered around the corner of his locker as well. The two of them did make a cute couple. Even though she hadn't known the red head for very long, she found herself rooting for him.

Meanwhile, over at David's locker, Max cast a suspicious look down the hallway. David had become increasingly flustered over the last minute and now they had two spies watching them.

"Okay David, what's going on?" she demanded. "We have an audience." David gave a start at that and looked in the direction she was pointing. He saw Terry and Dana quickly duck behind the open locker.

"McGinnis!" he yelled. "Get a hobby!"

Terry stuck his head out again and smirked. Dana gave him a thumbs up. _Oh great, now he's got her into this._ David glared at the two. Max planted her hands on her hips and smirked at him. She now had a very good idea what this was about. However, she decided it would be more fun to wait for him to ask.

"_David_…" she said.

David gulped and looked at her. Great.

"Uh…" _Oh come on Kae, just get it over with. _"Um…are you busy tonight?" he asked. Max smirked slyly as she leaned toward him.

"Nope," she replied. "Why?" Of course she knew why, but she wanted to hear him say it. David blushed a little as he stammered for a reply.

"Uh…I was wondering…you know…if…uh…"

"Kae!" Terry finally yelled. "Just spit it out!" David turned to glare at his friend. Somehow, without him noticing it, he and Dana had snuck closer.

"McGinnis! Go away!" he yelled. Undeterred, Terry smirked even wider and pointed over at David.

"Hey Max, David wants to know if…" David threw his library book at the other teenager.

"Beat it McGinnis!" Terry grinned at him again, but refused to move. David realized that neither he nor Dana was going to move until he asked Max out.

"Okay, fine," he muttered. He looked over at Max, but she was still grinning at him. _Great, she figured it out._ Apparently she was waiting for him to say it though.

"You want to go out tonight?" he asked. There. He had spit out.

"Sure," she said. "Any time's good for me." Then to his surprise, she kissed him on the cheek, winked, and walked off.

Whoa.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Evan Kae looked around him with amazement. Bruce Wayne had invited him over so they could talk without any kind of teenage interruption. Even though he now knew that the billionaire had been, or still was, Batman, he hadn't expected this. He hadn't expected him to actually take him down into the batcave.

Bruce looked over at the younger man and could see the question in his eyes. He walked over to the costume case where Evan was standing.

"You weren't expecting me to take you down here," Bruce stated. Evan looked over at him before admitting quietly.

"No I wasn't. May I ask why? I'm sure that you don't show everyone this."

"You're right, I don't."

The two men looked at each other a moment before Bruce motioned towards a couple of chairs. Bruce had placed another one near his own at the computer. He waited until they had sat down to explain himself.

"You raised David all of these years knowing full well who he is…and knowing what he might become if he chose to. You're not just any man off the street."

"No, I'm not," Evan answered. Bruce smirked slightly as he laid a hand on his dog.

"Besides," Bruce added. "Ace likes you."

Evan smiled a bit at that. The dog stared at him before wagging his tail slightly.

"I'm guessing that Ace is choosy about who he likes," he said. Bruce nodded at him in reply. Evan looked around the cave again before looking at the old man across from him.

"Do your friends know about…"

"Only one," Bruce replied. "She was once known as Batgirl. The others don't know yet." Evan raised an eyebrow at that.

"May I ask why? After all, his mother and grandfather were in the League."

"Because they will expect him to become the Flash," Bruce answered. "He must make that decision on his own. David isn't ready for all the attention he would get from the League." Evan was silent for a long moment.

"Thank you," he finally said. "I was afraid that you would try to talk him into it."

"No, I wouldn't. But you were right to worry. Others in the League might very well try it, thinking that they were helping." Bruce eyed the other man before asking quietly.

"If he does decide to become the Flash, will you let him?"

Evan was silent for a long time. Bruce had never really been a parent, but he had regarded Dick on some level, Tim, and now Terry, as his own children. Hell, Terry _was _his own child. He understood the anxiety that the younger man must be feeling right now.

"If David does decide he wants to," Evan finally said quietly. "I won't stop him from doing something he wants to do. But I'm hoping he'll at least wait a few more years. I'm not his real father, but I might as well be. No one wants their child in harm's way."

_You're right, _Bruce thought. _What parent does? _Despite all the times that he pushed Terry, he never pushed him any farther than he thought the teenager could handle. Bruce and Clark had several times come to a head when it came to Terry's role in the League. Terry had decided to be a part timer, like Bruce. But with how thin the League's ranks had grown over the years, Clark wanted him to be more involved.

Bruce, being the protective man that he was, had told Clark to go to hell.

Bruce was jolted out of his thoughts when several alarms suddenly began to go off on his computer. His eyes narrowed and he whirled his chair around to the console. Evan bolted to his feet in alarm at the same time that Ace began to growl. Bruce swore under his breath as his fingers danced over the keyboard.

"What is it?" Evan asked.

"A break in. Someone's in the house."

Foam very nearly dripped from Ace's mouth as he stared up at the steps. With an angry growl, the dog raced up the steps and stood snarling at the closed door. Bruce pressed a button and the door opened.

The dog raced up into the house. Seconds later, Bruce and Evan could hear angry barks echoing from the first floor, followed by a large crash and several thuds. Then they heard a high pitched yip, followed by silence.

The two men looked warily at each other before facing the door. Bruce touched a few buttons, but his backup security system wouldn't activate.

"Part of my system has been hacked into," Bruce admitted with agitation. He gripped his cane with both hands. Evan quickly pulled out his cell phone and hit the speed dial. _Come on David…_ Hopefully his nephew wasn't still in class.

"_Uncle Evan?" _David answered.

"David! I'm at Bruce's, you and Terry need to…!"

The cell phone was knocked from his hand by some flying object. Evan clutched his bleeding hand to his chest as he glared over at the man standing up in the doorway. Bruce stared icily up at the intruder.

"Debray. I should have known."

Fernand Debray smirked down at the two men while cradling his bleeding arm. That damn dog had bit him. Even so, this was unexpected. He had known that two people were in the house, but he had thought that the other would be McGinnis. Too bad. Oh well, Alexandra should still be happy with this.

She hadn't ordered him to come; he had done this on his own. No way was he going to let that green skinned freak one up him.

"And a good'day to you too, Monsieurs. Mademoiselle Luthor is interested in meeting you Wayne. If you come along quietly, then dat's all de better for me."

Bruce made eye contact with Evan and motioned very slightly over to the nearest weapon to them. Evan closed his eyes once in understanding. The architect then ducked as Bruce whipped out a batarang and threw it at the intruder. Evan rolled onto his feet and dashed over to the small glass exhibit case containing a strange gun.

Something zipped by his head as his fist enclosed around the weapon, causing the case to shatter. Evan rolled onto his back, pointed the weapon, and pressed the trigger. Sheets of ice shot out as the weapon discharged.

Debray cursed in surprise as ice enveloped his legs. Another flung batarang cut through the wires behind his ear, severing his connection to Bruce Wayne's computer. Damn it, he wasn't about to be beaten by an old man and this stranger.

"Give it up Debray," Bruce ordered. "It was careless of Luthor to send you here by yourself. That is, if she sent you at all."

Damn it, the old man was good.

However, just then, part of the wall blew open. As the dust began to settle, Debray could make out the form of a grinning Jon-El standing among the debris.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Uncle Evan?" David asked. "Uncle Evan?"

The teenager listened carefully for an answer, but he was met only by silence. Shit, what the hell?

David looked around him. It was just the beginning of lunch period, so Terry should be…

The teenager slipped out of sight and zipped over to the cafeteria. Just as he had thought, Terry was standing in the lunch line talking to Dana. Trying not to run, David walked quickly over to Terry.

Terry, in turn, had spotted the approaching teenager and had trailed off in his sentence after seeing David's expression. He looked over at Dana, who also had a worried expression on her face.

"Something's wrong Dana, I'll be back," he promised. Terry rushed over to the red haired teenager.

"What is it?" he asked. David pointed to the hallway and Terry nodded. The two young men rushed out of the cafeteria and out of earshot. As soon as the two of them ducked into an empty classroom, David bent closer and whispered.

"I think something bad's happened. Uncle Evan just called me not even a minute ago. He said that he was at Bruce's and that we needed to…"

"To what?" Terry asked.

"I don't know. He never finished. He sounded really anxious though, like something was wrong."

Terry clenched his fists before racing down the hall to his locker. He grabbed his cell phone out of his pocket as he ran and hit the speed dial for Bruce. The phone rang, but no answer.

"Shit," he muttered. Terry ripped his school bag out of his locker and turned around to see that David was waiting. The two teenagers ran outside. As soon as they were out of sight, David grabbed Terry's arm and zoomed off into the distance.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"What de hell are y'doing here?" Debray yelled. He had done this on his own. Luthor hadn't known about this, had she? Jon-El shrugged his shoulders carelessly in answer.

"Alex said you were going to do something stupid and told me to come clean up your mess."

A shocked Bruce stared up at the newcomer. _Jonathan? _No, Jonathan Kent had been killed around thirty years ago. So who was this?

"I can handle dis Kid!" Debray protested. Jon-El smirked slightly as he melted the ice around the Frenchman's feet with his laser vision. Then the young clone jumped down to Evan and took the weapon from his hands.

"Sorry Sir," Jon-El apologized. "But since you're a witness and a friend of Mr. Wayne's, you're going to have to come with us." Evan glared challengingly at the clone, but he couldn't wrench free from the young man's super strong grip.

Bruce narrowed his eyes as twisting cords from Debray's fingers wrapped around his body. Slowly, and very purposely, Bruce "accidentally" dropped a bat tracer on the floor.

"Now now, we can't have dat, can we Monsieur?" Debray taunted. "Trying t'put a tracer on yourself so dat boy can'find you?"

The old man hid a smirk as they were picked up and flown out of the cave. He had dropped that one on purpose. The other one he had safely hidden on his body.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Terry and David raced up the hill and into the house. They paused only when they encountered the devastated living room and the motionless dog in the middle.

"Ace!" Terry yelled. He practically flew over to the dog's side. The teenager gently rolled the dog over and found, to his immense relief, that he was still alive. Ace's fur appeared to be singed, as if he had been burned from something.

A colorful string of obscenities flew from his mouth, courtesy of his Irish blood. Whoever did this was going to pay. No one touched his dog.

"Terry!"

Terry bolted up and raced over to the open entrance. Seconds later, the two teenagers were looking around the batcave. They called out for Bruce and Evan, but received no answer.

"Terry, look," David said. He picked up the bat tracer and handed it to him. Terry studied it for a long second before the answer occurred to him. His suspicions were confirmed moments later when he found an activated, moving signal.

"I found them," Terry answered. "I'm going after them." He grabbed the batsuit from his schoolbag and began to change in a hurry.

"Wrong," David answered. Terry looked over at him and gave a start. In the seconds that Terry had been tracking the signal, David had found his grandfather's old suit and put it on.

"You're not going after them," the Flash corrected. "_We _are."

In spite of himself, Terry grinned.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

_Author's Note: The weapon that Evan used was Mr. Freeze's weapon. Bruce has it as one of his mementos in his "museum"._


	12. An Old Ally Returns

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

_Author's Note: Sorry for the delayed update. I've been busy with school._

_**Recap:** In the last chapter, the Green Arrow and Red Tornado went over to Amanda Waller's house with the intention of protecting her. However, little did they know that "Waller" was in fact a disguised Chameleon. Even though nothing appeared wrong on the surface, their instincts told them that something was out of place. The two superheroes are planning to come back and investigate further._

_The day after the incident with Waller, David finally managed to ask Max out on a date. While he and Terry were at school, Evan Kae was with Bruce in the batcave. Debray attacked them in an attempt to win Luthor's favor. However, his attack failed and he was rescued by Jon-El. With the half-Kryptonian clone's help, they abducted Bruce and Evan._

_Terry and David left the school so that they could help Bruce and Evan. In order to save his uncle, David has donned Wally's old Flash costume._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 12: An Old Ally Returns**

Max stared down at the cell phone in her hand._ How the hell am I supposed to cover for you this time Ter? _With a start, she realized that she was going to have to cover for both Terry _and _David. Terry had just called her to give her a brief rundown of what had happened. Which brought her back to the problems at hand.

Lunch period was nearly over.

Dana was worried.

Dana was asking questions.

Max ducked into the women's restroom as Dana rounded a corner. Hell. How WAS she going to explain this one? Hell, how was she going to explain when neither Terry nor David showed up for class?

It was then that she came up with a brilliant solution. Well, at least a solution to the second part of the problem. It wouldn't solve the Dana situation.

The teenager smirked as she ducked into one of the empty stalls. She took her laptop out of her school bag and was hacked into the school's computer system moments later. Max tapped a few commands into the system and seconds later, all of the power shut off in the school. Well, not all technically. The emergency power system was still on.

So Max decided to also activate the fire alarms. There, that should cancel all classes for the rest of the day.

It paid to have a brilliant mind.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"So what's the plan McGinnis? You going to call any of your friends in the League?"

Terry's lips tightened beneath his cowl as he flew the batmobile towards the Great Lakes region. The signal had stopped at the northern most part of Michigan.

"No," he said. "We can handle it. I don't need _their _help."

David shrugged in the backseat. He gave a start as Terry spoke up again.

"I guess," Terry admitted reluctantly. "We could give Barbara Gordon a call."

"The Commissioner? Why?"

"She was Batgirl."

"Seriously?"

Terry hit Barbara's speed dial. Moments later, her voice came on over the speaker. The teenager briefly outlined what had happened, and what they were planning to do. Then to both of their surprise, Gordon asked if David was with him. Apparently she knew more than they had thought.

"_Terry, I don't know how much I can help you on this,"_ Barbara admitted.

"I know…"

"_But I know someone who can. I'll send him over to the batcave. He can assist you from Bruce's computer."_

"Oh yeah?" Terry asked. "And who's that?" Barbara smirked as she stared out her window.

"_Dick Grayson,"_ she answered. _"Good luck McGinnis…Kae…"_ She ended the call and immediately hit Dick's speed dial.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Dick Grayson had been grocery shopping for his wife when the phone call came. In fact, his two seven year old granddaughters had been trying to talk him into buying candy, although blackmail was more like it, when his pocket had vibrated.

"Barbara?" he asked in surprise. The two rarely talked anymore, even though they communicated much more than he did with Tim or Bruce. Something in her tone of voice immediately told him that something was wrong.

His eyes narrowed as he listened to his old friend. The twins quietly put the candy bags back as they sensed their grandfather's change of mood.

"Barbara, I'm not involved in this kind of thing anymore."

"_Bruce is missing Dick. Look, I know that the two of you are too damn stubborn to make up, but you can at least help those two kids." _Dick gave a start.

"Kids?" he asked.

"_Terry McGinnis and David Kae. You know who Terry is because I already told you before. But David…well…he's Wally's grandson. Iris's son."_

Dick stopped cold. That wasn't possible…was it? He numbly pushed the shopping cart towards the checkout as he listened to Barbara. The old man rubbed his eyebrows before staring down at his own grandchildren.

"Grandpa?" one dared to ask. "Are you okay?" Dick absently nodded his head as he handed some credits over to the cashier. Finally, he sighed.

"Gotham's a good two hours drive away Babs." This time, a slight tone of wry amusement appeared in Barbara's voice.

"_Two hours? That's so twentieth century Dick. I know you've got something stashed around at your house. You could have made it in an hour fifty years ago."_ Dick smiled weakly as an unexpected tingle of anticipation ran up his spine. He immediately pushed it down.

"Forty-five minutes," he said.

"_That's all?"_

"I have to take my grandkids home and unpack the groceries, or my wife will kill me."

"_Ah."_

"Bye Babs."

"_Bye Dick."_

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Bruce glared at the red haired woman in front of him. Alexandra Luthor smirked as she tapped her left forefinger against her chin. Debray had since disappeared after their arrival, however, that young man was still here. The one that looked like Jonathan Kent.

Bruce suspected that he was a clone.

"Hmmm…" Luthor murmured. "You, I was expecting," she said to Bruce. Then she turned to look at Evan Kae. "You however, I was not."

"Sorry to disappoint you," Evan muttered. Luthor's smile widened as she walked back to her desk as Jon-El stood guard behind the two men. Her heeled boots clicked against the marble flooring as she glided gracefully across the room. Moments later, she was back with a file.

She opened it up and pulled out a single photo. Then she held it in front of Evan. He hid a grimace at the photo of David and Terry ducking into Bruce's limousine.

"Care to explain this?" she asked. Evan's brown eyes met hers boldly, but he said nothing. Alexandra considered him a moment before turning the photo around to examine it.

"Curious," she said. "I do not know why, but this boy's face seems strangely familiar to me." Evan's eyes flashed dangerously, but he again stayed silent. Luthor regarded him and the equally obstinate Bruce before walking away.

"Fine. However, I _will _discover your secret. Jon-El, put them in the chamber for now."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

David hopped out of the batmobile as Terry checked some coordinates. They were still nearly three hundred miles away, but the two had decided to land. David's speed would more than make up for it.

It had been nearly forty minutes since they called the Commissioner. They hadn't heard back from her or this Dick Grayson yet. Terry knew who he was, but the two had never met.

"So which way Mc….Batman?" David asked. He really needed to get into the habit of calling him that now. Terry looked around the small, empty valley they had landed in before placing the batmobile in camouflage mode.

"East," Terry said. "But let's not get too close. They'll have tough security."

"Why Lake Huron? Wouldn't there be better places…oh yeah. I guess they wouldn't expect anyone to be looking for them there." He caught Terry studying his suit.

"What?" he asked.

"I'm trying to figure out how you're going to sneak around in a red suit."

"Who cares? I've got speed. No one's going to see me."

"Still, we need to be careful," Terry said. David nodded his head. After all, Terry was far more experienced than he was at this. The two teenagers nodded at each other before David grabbed onto Terry's arm and raced off into the distance.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Dick stared around him as he descended the familiar staircase. It had been decades since he had stepped into the cave, but nothing had changed. There were some minor changes, yes. But the smells, the bats, Bruce's museum…another small shiver of expectation ran up his spine and was immediately shoved down.

He'd given up this life a long time ago. He didn't want it back.

A small, weak growl met him by Bruce's computer. An irate, but immobile dog was glaring from his spot on the floor. Dick paused and studied him. The black furred dog was lying on a pile of blankets, with a water dish and a rawhide bone sitting nearby. The dog was obviously injured, as he couldn't bring up the energy to stand up.

Deciding that the mutt wasn't currently any threat, Dick walked over the computer and sat down. The dog glared at him. Dick sighed and turned to face the agitated animal.

"Look mutt, I'm not here to hurt anything. I used to live here." _A long time ago. _The dog continued to glare at him. _He's definitely Bruce's dog. _Dick very slowly inched his hand forward and paused just outside of the dog's reach. His black nose twitched as he sniffed the hand twice before staring back up at Dick. Then the dog relaxed as he put his head back down on his paws.

Now that their truce had been called, Dick turned back to the computer and searched through Bruce's files. Knowing the old man, he probably had a radiolink in the kid's batsuit. Now where was…ah.

"This is Dick Grayson. Can you hear me?" A few moments passed before a young man's voice came over the speaker.

"_Yeah, I hear you. This is Terry McGinnis."_

"Good. Is…where is…"

"_I'm right here Mr. Grayson," _another voice said. Dick gave a start in surprise.

"_I found an extra radiolink that we put in David's mask," _Terry McGinnis replied.

"Ahh…mask?" Dick asked.

"_The old man's got a vidlink in my cowl," _Terry said. _"You can use it to see what I'm seeing." _Dick searched the computer and found what the boy was talking about. Seconds later, he had the vidlink open on his computer. He saw that Terry was standing somewhere out in the wilderness.

"Where…" he started to ask. He saw the camera turn to focus on another figure. Dick froze briefly as the Flash grinned and waved to him. _Wally…_

No. Not Wally.

"Tell me what exactly you two are planning to do and we'll go from there," Dick said. "We need to make sure we don't do anything reckless." _Otherwise known as stupid._

"_So storming the enemy's territory in a bloody jihad doesn't count?" _Terry asked. Dick's eyes widened as he opened as mouth, and paused.

"_He's joking," _David said.

"A Batman with a sense of humor, just what I need," Dick muttered dryly.

"_I try," _Terry answered. _"My day isn't complete unless I drive Bruce up the wall."_

Dick blinked. Then he laughed. And laughed. And laughed some more. Then he wiped his eyes and turned back to the task at hand.

"All right gentlemen," he said seriously. "Let's get to work."

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_Author's Note: I know this was a short chapter, but I promise there will be more in the next. I just thought it would be good to get Dick in on the action._

_Also, I promise I will describe the new Flash suit in the near future. It will mostly be the same, but there will be some changes, and some added features._


	13. Breaking and Entering

_Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond, the Flash, or any of the D.C. universe._

_Author's Note: Sorry for the delayed update. I've been busy with school. ___

_**Recap:**__ In the last chapter, Max helped our two heroes by cutting off the power in their school and by turning on the fire alarms. However, hiding the truth from Dana will be much harder after this._

_Dick Grayson has come in out of retirement, at the request of Barbara, to help Terry and David rescue their mentors. Terry and David are heading north to the Great Lakes region and are nearly ready to begin their mission._

_Meanwhile, the Justice League is about to start an investigation of their own._

**Resurrecting the Red**

**Chapter 13: Breaking and Entering**

"Are you two sure about this?" Clark asked. He received a nod from Tornado and a smirk from Green Arrow. The Kryptonian sighed before he continued. "All right then people, let's get to work. Gear will hack into Waller's security system and give you technical support."

The two Leaguers had pressed Clark to let them return later to look around. As Ethan had said, everything appeared normal on the surface, but their instincts were telling them otherwise. Since Clark wanted to have a closer eye on Amanda Waller anyway, he had authorized the search. He could deal with an angry Waller later if he needed to.

"Get in and get out," Clark ordered. "Try not to get into trouble…yes, I'm talking about you Ethan." Ethan Queen had put on an expression of mock hurt before flashing an innocent smile.

"Yes Sir," Green Arrow saluted.

"Static and Huntress will be standing by if things suddenly get hot," Clark added. _Which hopefully, they won't. _

"Huntress, huh?"

"Keep your mind on the mission, Romeo," Static Shock said. He and Huntress had entered the control room moments before. Elizabeth Szasz was the daughter of the Question and the Huntress. Ethan quickly turned his head so that she couldn't see his face redden.

For all his quick wit and sarcastic humor, he was tongue tied around her.

"Let's go," Tornado said. He and the Green Arrow turned and exited the room. Clark walked over to the control monitors and waited.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Are you sure this is the place, Mr. Grayson?" David asked.

"_Call me Dick. You make me feel like an old man."_

"You are an old man," Terry pointed out. The two teenagers snickered as they heard Dick mutter to himself on the other end. The two teenagers were looking at an abandoned warehouse sitting on the shore of Lake Michigan.

"The coordinates say that Bruce's signal is coming from under the lake," Terry pointed out.

"_There's probably an underground facility," _Dick said. _"I uh…hacked into one of the satellites of Wayne-Powers. There's more in that warehouse than you think."_

"Can you be a little more specific?" David asked.

"_Most of it has been shielded from the satellite. Apparently Ms. Luthor is trying to avoid unfriendly eyes. However, I do detect that there is some kind of facility underneath the warehouse. It extends to under the lake. That's all I can tell you right now."_

"Thanks Mr. Grayson," Terry said.

"_Didn't I just tell you two to call me Dick?"_

"Yes, Mr. Grayson."

"It's a Terry thing," David explained. "He likes to annoy people."

"_How does Bruce put up with him?"_

"It's one of those unexplainable mysteries."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Bruce carefully studied their surroundings as he waited for Terry. Both he and Evan were in some strange, empty chamber. Neither of them were bound up, but then again, Bruce knew that they didn't have to be. Luthor would see them when it was most convenient for her.

He knew the boy would come, as would David. He didn't expect the red haired boy to stay behind. The old man just hoped that they would be able to pull this off. He had every confidence in Terry's abilities, however, he had never gone up against someone like Luthor before. And even as intelligent as David was, the teenager still didn't have any experience in this kind of work.

It was possible that they had contacted the League, but Bruce doubted it. Terry didn't seem to have too high of an opinion of most of the League members he had met. He and Rex Stewart had clashed more than once over conflicting personalities.

No, if they had called anyone, it would have been Barbara. Terry would only call Clark as a last resort. He had Bruce's stubbornness when it came to accomplishing something without Justice League support.

The question was, would Barbara be able to do anything to help them?

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

A silent shadow crept into the empty warehouse. It glided unseen through the immediate area before crouching behind an old, abandoned crate. There was a suggestion of movement as it reached its hand up to the side of its head.

"_The area looks clear Flash,"_ Terry whispered. _"So you can…" _He dropped off as a red figure zoomed to his side.

They had decided that Terry would go first to scout out the area. He had more experience than David, and could spot surveillance while moving unseen. Once Terry had determined that the area was clear, David would catch up.

Batman peered around a corner before stepping around it. He jumped suddenly and just managed to avoid an invisible security beam that ran across the floor. Terry froze on the ground and scanned around him. There were several such beams crisscrossing the next room.

It paid to have infrared vision in his cowl. However, Flash didn't have that advantage.

"_David,"_ Dick said quietly. _"There's a security beam that Terry just jumped over." _David nodded to the video cam in Terry's mask to show he understood. They had decided not to talk unless they had to. David crept silently to where he had seen Terry jump.

"_Okay David, listen carefully,"_ he continued. _"The beam is about two feet to your left and is about a foot and a half off the ground."_ Dick watched as the teenager shot him a thumbs up sign. He had to remind himself again that this wasn't Wally.

David jumped the beam and moved to Terry's side. The three worked quietly for several minutes until the two teenagers were through the beams. They paused again as Terry scanned the area. He knew that far more heavy security was going to be ahead.

As they made their way through the warehouse, Dick scowled at the screen. The satellite would only penetrate so far into the complex. If he had any true skill with computers, he would try hacking into the system. Unfortunately, as he well knew, he might be able to manage it, but it would be instantly detected by Luthor.

Dick was suddenly out of his seat as he registered a new presence in the cave. He unconsciously reached into his jacket, only to realize a moment later that he no longer kept a weapon in there. As he stared up at the startled figure at the top of the steps, he realized that the dog wasn't growling. He took that as a good sign.

"Who are you?" he called out suspiciously. There was a pause before the figure made its way hesitantly down the stairs. As it grew closer, he saw that it was a dark skinned girl with pink hair, probably seventeen or eighteen years old. She looked around at her surroundings again, as if she couldn't believe she was there.

"Who are you?" Dick asked again. He moved in front of the girl to block her entrance. Behind him, he could hear David whisper _'Mr. Grayson?'_He listened carefully to the computer as he glared intently at the teenager in front of him.

"I'm a friend of Terry and David," she finally said boldly. "My name's Max Gibson."

"Max, isn't that a guy's name?" She glared at him and Dick backed off at that. He knew not to push a woman, no matter what her age was, more than he had to. Even so, he didn't move.

"The alarms didn't go off," he continued.

"Yeah, I know," Max explained innocently. "I turned them off." Dick raised an eyebrow at that.

"You…_turned_them _off_?" he asked in surprise. Bruce had very advanced systems. If she had hacked into them…

Dick turned around and walked back to the computer. He felt the girl follow close behind him as he stood in front of it. He heard Terry quietly ask what was wrong.

"I was…" Dick started to explain. He didn't want to admit that the girl had caught him off guard. "…detained. Your friend Max is here." He heard Terry quietly swear to himself.

"_Max? What the hell are you doing there? Why aren't you at school?"_

"School's canceled," Max answered slyly. "The power mysteriously went out and the fire alarms came on. I came here to hide from your girlfriend." Dick gave her a considering look as he heard the other two snicker, well, one of them snicker. Terry was moaning under his breath on how he was going to be killed by both Bruce and Dana.

"How good are you at hacking?" Dick finally asked.

"_She helps me all the time as unofficial technical back up_," Terry quickly answered_. "Bruce won't come out and exactly admit it, but he did say go as far to say that she had 'some potential'."_

"_She's ranked number one in our class,"_ David answered helpfully._"She's a whiz with science, math, computers, you name it."_

"And you're friends with these delinquents?" Dick asked her with amusement.

"_Hey!"_David protested, causing Dick to smile. That would have been Wally's response.

"_I need someone to cheat off of_," Terry answered. Dick's lips twitched. He somehow doubted that Bruce approved of that. He studied Max again and waited for her response. She looked up at him with surprise before grinning slyly.

"What do you want me to do?" she asked eagerly. Dick grinned.

"I need you to break into a system for me. By the way, my name's Dick."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Ethan Queen moved silently through Amanda Waller's beloved rose garden as he paused next to the house. _Tornado should be in there by now, _he thought. He slipped a set of heat vision goggles over his eyes as he scanned the house.

He was only picking up one heat signature and it was upstairs. Where was…there. He saw a small heat signature in the east part of the house. Knowing now where both Waller and Red Tornado were, he ran silently around a corner.

"_The outside security system has been turned off," _Gear said. Ethan nodded as he quickly strung one of his arrows and shot it at a section of the roof, a part that was at the opposite end of where he was detecting Waller. He paused before gripping the thin, but strong, rope that was protruding from his arrow.

With another look around at his surroundings, he began to climb.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Chameleon smirked at his computer. Apparently he had two guests.

He hadn't noticed it at first. Amanda Waller's security system hadn't gone off, at least, not the main one. She had several hidden ones that had detected them around the same time that Chameleon had felt their presence.

The metahuman wasn't telepathic, by all means. However, he was what could be considered an empath. He could sense emotions.

Chameleon debated on how he should handle this. Should he play the part of an enraged Amanda Waller, or should he take them out? He couldn't call Alex to ask if he wanted to. The League was most likely monitoring the house for any outgoing communications.

With another look at the computer screen, he shapeshifted in the image of Amanda Waller and walked out of the room.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Barbara Gordon tapped her fingers impatiently as she attempted to study the police reports in front of her. That failing, she finally picked up her cell phone and called Dick.

"How is it going?" she instantly asked.

"_We'll find out," _Dick answered. _"I've recruited some unexpected help." _

"Oh?" She raised an eyebrow. "Who might that be?"

"_Maxine Gibson, she's apparently a friend of those two boys. Turns out she's quite the hacker."_

"I don't think Bruce is going to be happy that you let her on his computer," she said. "I'll admit, she _is_ good from what I've seen. But Bruce doesn't want her involved any more than she has to be. Plus, you know how protective the old man is about his computer."

"_I'll take the blame," _Dick replied dryly. _"It'll give us something else to argue about."_

"Honestly Dick, can't you two make up? It's been years."

"_Those two kids are really something else,"_ Dick said suddenly. _"Terry acts a lot like Bruce when he's not trying to annoy me, and David's doing very well for his first time as the Flash."_

"I'm sure that's true," Barbara murmured. "Keep me informed Dick."

"_All right, bye Babs."_

Barbara set down the phone and stared out the window. Dick had changed the subject rather than talk about him and Bruce. She hoped that this turn of events would force the two stubborn men to speak.

If not, she supposed she could enlist Terry and David to help. Perhaps duct taping Bruce and Dick to a couple of chairs would work. She knew Terry would be more than happy to do it. That, and seeing how David was Wally's grandson, he would most likely help too.

Briefly amused by the mental image of Bruce and Dick being assaulted by two insane teenaged superheroes, Barbara finally sighed and stared blankly at the police reports again.

_You'd better be okay Old Man._

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Red Tornado paused at the sight of the woman standing down the hall. Amanda Waller crossed her arms and glared at him.

"Waller knows we're here," Tornado said into his radiolink.

"_Tell her she can call me if she has a problem," _Clark said. The Kryptonian was busy pacing the control room of the Watch Tower. He paused suddenly as he heard a crash over the communications link and was instantly standing next to Gear.

"What happened?" he asked.

"His link's dead," Gear explained. Clark swore before he pressed a button on the console.

"Green Arrow, go find Red Tornado."

"_I'm already on my way," _Ethan answered. Clark nodded absently as he turned around to face the other two superheroes in the room.

"Static, Huntress…"

"We're on our way," Huntress replied.

Clark continued his pacing as he waited for more news. He resisted the urge to go down there himself. Dammit. If only J'onn was here.

This wasn't the first time he wished for the Martian. Clark missed his friend, yes, but he also missed his presence for a more practical reason. He wasn't really cut out to be an administrator. Clark would rather be on the front line instead of directing a mission from the Tower. He needed to talk to someone far more suited to this than him.

Perhaps he should call Bruce.


	14. Revelations

_Disclaimer: I don't own DC Comics (unfortunately)._

_**Recap: **Terry and David are in the process of infiltrating Luthor's complex up in the Great Lakes. Their friend Max unexpectantly showed up, and after his initial suspicion, Dick has put her technical abilities to work. Meanwhile, Clark authorized Red Tornado and Green Arrow to conduct a search in Amanda Waller's house. Static Shock and Huntress, who had been standing by as back up, have left to join their comrades. Chameleon, disguised as Waller, has confronted Tornado._

_Feeling the need for another point of view, Clark has decided to call Bruce._

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 14:_ Revelations

"Tornado! Green Arrow!" Huntress called out. She and Static ran through one of the now devastated hallways. Amanda Waller would not be a happy woman when she found her trashed house.

The two Leaguers halted at the bottom of a staircase. They could hear sounds of a battle raging upstairs. Virgil and Elizabeth nodded at each other before racing up to the second floor. There was a cracking of splintering wood before a green figure was hurled down at them. Virgil caught the unconscious Ethan Queen with one hand as he flew up the stairs. He carefully deposited the younger man on the floor as Huntress fired her crossbow at the figure that had just appeared.

Virgil cocked his head as he studied the blonde haired, green skinned figure in front of him. The man smirked as he stepped around some broken furniture. Static smirked back.

"I'm sorry to say, but you're no beauty queen," he quipped. The other man cocked an eyebrow.

"Is that so?" he asked dryly.

"Yeah, my wife is much prettier." Virgil shot out his hand and blasted the man with a wave of electricity. To his surprise, the bolts passed right through him, as if he were a ghost. He'd only ever seen J'onn do that. It was no wonder Tornado and Green Arrow were having a tough time. This could get interesting.

_"What's going on?" _Clark asked.

"I'm a little busy old man, call back later." Virgil barely dodged a fist from the other man. He gave a grunt as Chameleon's foot met his stomach. Virgil flew back into the back wall.

_"Virgil!"_

"Tornado and Green Arrow are both down," Huntress answered for him. Virgil was launching another barrage of electricity. "This guy can go through solid objects, he has super strength...oh and it looks like he's a shapeshifter too," she added dryly. The strange man had shape shifted into a mirror image of Virgil, much to his irritation. She heard Clark swear under his breath.

_"Get out of there," _Clark suddenly commanded. _"If he can phase through solid objects, you two aren't going to be able to do any damage. Let's hope he's not a telepath like J'onn," _he added under his breath.

"Coincidentally, he's green Sir," Elizabeth added as she checked Ethan's pulse.

_"What?"_ Clark asked. _"Is he a Martian?"_

"I don't think so," she answered. "But I don't know for sure. Can you lock onto Green Arrow and beam him up? I need to go find Tornado while Static has this guy distracted."

_"We're bringing him up now. Go find Tornado and then you two get out of there."_

Elizabeth nodded her head as she slipped Ethan's heat vision visor over her eyes. His body vanished a moment later as the Watch Tower used their emergency transporters to bring him up. She scanned around and found a small heat source several rooms away. A minute later, she had an arm around the still conscious and very weak Tornado.

"I've got him," she said. "Get Virgil and us out of here." Seconds later, the three Leaguers were back on the Watch Tower. Huntress was agitated that they had been forced to retreat. She'd get that green bastard back.

Helping Tornado to walk, she set off for the medical ward.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"What the hell is that?" Dick muttered to himself. Max shrugged as she studied the images on the screen. The complex was far larger than he had originally realized. _Where's Cyborg when you need him? _There were several sections that even had magnetic barriers around them to prevent unfriendly eyes. But from what he could see...

_"Mr. Grayson? What is it?"_ David whispered. Dick was too busy studying the computer to notice that they had yet again failed to call him 'Dick'.

Dick frowned as he studied the layout on the screen. Bruce's signal was coming from the lower southeast chambers. How to get there without being detected though was the problem.

_"Mr. Grayson?" _Terry asked cautiously. Dick studied the blueprints for a few long moments before finally coming to a decision.

"There's a corridor underneath the two of you, correct?" he asked. The boys had succeeded in entering the underground compound from the warehouse. After hearing a confirmation from them, he continued. "Terry, you have the advantage with your suit. Go down and scout out the area. David, once Terry has determined that the area is safe, join him."

_"Which way am I supposed to go?" _Terry asked quietly. _"Bruce's signal is in the southeast, but I'm bound to run into something. This place is probably crawling with security."_

"You're right," Dick admitted. "And Max can't shut them all off. Even if she could, Luthor would get suspicious."

_"Right, we wouldn't want that, would we?" _Terry asked sarcastically. The eighteen year old turned on his camouflage mode and slipped quietly down to the floor below them. David waited silently, hoping that his uncle and Bruce were okay.

"Mr. Grayson," Max said suddenly.

"Don't _you_ start, I told you to call me Dick...what is it?"

"There's a message for Mr. Wayne. It's from someone named Clark Kent," she answered. Dick felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. _And thus all hell shall break loose..._

"Put him on," Dick said tiredly. "I'd better get this over with."

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"How long are they planning to keep us here like this?" Evan asked in agitation. He was beginning to pace their small room.

"Be patient," Bruce advised. "This is an old psychological trick. It's often used against prisoners of war to force themselves into breaking down. By being in isolation and kept waiting, their own self doubts and anxieties destroy them. As it is, I'm surprised Luthor didn't separate us." Evan sighed and sat down. The older man was right of course, but it was still hard to wait.

"Waiting is the hardest part," he muttered.

"It always is," Bruce agreed. "Especially for me."

"I guess that you would already have been out of here, if this was twenty or thirty years ago." Bruce smirked a bit at that.

"Perhaps," he agreed. "But this should be a good learning experience for Terry." He avoided mentioning David. Bruce knew full well that they were being watched and recorded at all times. Evan was silent at that.

"You know," he said. "Graduation is five months from now. Has Terry thought about college?" Evan couldn't think of anything else to talk about.

"I've been forcing him to work on college applications between school and...work. I tried to talk him into Princeton, but he seems to have his mind set on Gotham State University."

"No offense, but I can't see Terry at Princeton," Evan observed. Bruce's lips quirked in amusement. He'd already come to the same conclusion.

"No, but it was worth a try. It did trick him into working harder on his GSU application." Evan laughed at that. Perhaps he needed to try something like that with David.

"David's been a little slow on that," Evan said. "Perhaps you could also give him a little...encouragement." Bruce smirked.

"I think that can be arranged."

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Clark hadn't expected any of this. He had called Bruce, expecting to see a pair of ice blue eyes glaring at him over the screen. Instead, he was answered by a young teenage girl and a familiar man whose blue eyes were almost as obstinate as Bruce's.

"Dick?" he asked in disbelief. "Where's Bruce?" Clark watched as the girl's eyes widened at him. Who was she and what was she doing there? "Dick?" he asked again. There was a pause as he watched the white haired Dick Grayson take a deep breath.

_"He's been kidnapped,"_ Dick finally admitted. _"He and a friend of his were taken by one of Luthor's cronies, at least, Barbara and I are assuming it was her. Bruce managed to hide a tracer on himself that we've tracked up to the Great Lakes." _Dick could tell that Clark was trying very hard not to lose his cool.

"Bruce was kidnapped and you didn't tell us?"

_"Calm down Clark. We're on it."_

"Dick, you shouldn't have sent Terry in alone. You should have called us," Clark stated angrily. "He's too inexperienced to..."

_"Terry's not alone,"_ Dick shot back. _"And the kid's not as inexperienced as you think. He's got talent, all three of them do in fact."_

"All three?" Clark asked. Dick motioned towards the girl next to him.

_"Her name's Max Gibson, she's a friend of Terry's. She's hacked into Luthor's computer system for me. And the other..." _Dick trailed off. Clark wondered at the unreadable expression on the younger man's face.

"What about the other one?" Clark asked. He could see Dick visibly bracing himself.

_"The other kid's name is David Kae, is uncle was the man who was kidnapped with Bruce. He...he's the Flash." _Dick saw Clark's eyes widen at that.

"The Flash?" Clark asked carefully. He saw Dick's face tighten. "What aren't you telling me Dick?" Dick took another deep breath before answering.

_"He's Wally's grandson. He's the same age as Terry." _There was a very long pause.

"**What? How is that possible? Iris**..."

"It's true Clark. Amanda Waller had him removed before Iris died. Bruce found out about him by accident a few weeks ago when he transferred to Terry's school."

Clark stared at Dick. The Watch Tower control room had become dead silent. _Wally's...grandson? Wally..._

"Why the hell didn't any of you tell me?" he asked quietly. His anger and obvious hurt feelings were clearly visible in his voice. "Why the hell didn't Bruce tell me?"

"I don't know, I just found out today," Dick answered testily. "Why don't you ask the old man yourself after we've rescued them?"

"Dick..."

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have to make sure these two kids don't get themselves killed."

Clark stared at the now blank computer screen. _Wally...Bruce, why didn't you tell me? _Shayera and John were going to be mad as hell. Hell, even Diana was going to be pissed when she found out. _Why didn't you tell any of us? _Clark closed his eyes and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

_Wally..._

He missed Wally. He missed all of his stupid jokes. Clark also missed Linda West. She and Lois had always enjoyed getting together.

"Did you hear all that?" Clark asked. He had heard Rex Stewart and Donna Troy come up behind him. Donna had served alongside Wally in the Teen Titans as Wonder Girl. Now she helped the League as a part timer.

"We heard," Donna said. "I can't wait to see what Diana's reaction will be."

"You want us to go help?" Rex asked. He remembered Wally and his daughter. He'd once had a crush on Iris West when they were still teenagers. She and her brother had used to come over all the time to play basketball with him. It was too bad that Barry West hadn't amounted to much, he had once held so much potential. He knew that Wally had been greatly disappointed in his son.

"Go ahead," Clark said. "Donna, you might trying talking to Dick again. I think he'd respond better to you. If not, I'm sure Barbara knows what's going on."

Clark sat down as the two Leaguers left the room. He was still trying to take all of this in. Wally had been killed years ago. Linda, their son Barry, a pregnant Iris, and her husband had later been killed by Grodd.

At least, they had all thought she was still pregnant. He'd had no idea that Waller had saved the child. If he had known...

_Wally..._

Clark rested his face in his hands. Despite the fact that his Kryptonian blood slowed down the aging process, he felt very very old.

_Wally...forgive me. I didn't know._

_I didn't know._

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Terry and David stared around them wordlessly. They had quite accidentally stumbled into this room while trying to hide from Luthor's robotic guard "dogs". David had managed to destroy the small machines and hide the evidence before they could transmit. At least, the two of them hoped that was the case.

"Dick, can you see this?"

_"I...can bar...hear you...breaking up...magnetic fiel...vidcam's not...rkning..."_

The two teenagers wandered wordlessly around the room, their mission briefly forgotten. Hundreds of man-sized tubes crisscrossed the room. Most of them were empty.

However, many of them weren't. Several of the tubes had people inside of them.

"Ter...Batman, what're you doing?" David asked. Terry was clicking away with some small object in his hands.

"I'm taking pictures," he answered. "Whatever this is, I'm sure it's illegal. Here, I have another one. Take what pictures you can..." David zoomed around the room, snapping pictures as he went. Terry shrugged as he bent closer to examine the control system on one of the tubes. The glass was fogged up so he rubbed his gloved hand over the glass.

He bent closer for a better view and saw the sleeping face of a blonde haired woman. His breath caught in his throat.

_Wait a minute, this isn't possible. Didn't she die?_

The woman was wearing a red and blue outfit, with a familiar 'S' symbol on the front. With sudden realization, Terry realized what the tubes were. They were all cryotubes.

These people were in a state of cryonic suspension. He remembered reading something about this before. Terry glanced back down at the control system and realized that the woman inside the tube was still alive. His heart began to beat faster.

"Uh...Flash?" David had grown mysteriously quiet where ever he was in the room. "I just found Superwoman." There was a pause.

"Oh yeah," David countered from the back of the room. "Well I just found the Martian Manhunter, at least, I think it's him."


	15. The Fastest Man Alive

_Disclaimer: I don't own DC Comics (unfortunately)._

_**Recap: **Clark finally learned about David in the last chapter while a certain young speedster and his vigilante friend discovered something startling within Luthor's compound:_

_"Uh...Flash?" David had grown mysteriously quiet where ever he was in the room. "I just found Superwoman." There was a pause._

_"Oh yeah," David countered from the back of the room. "Well I just found the Martian Manhunter, at least, I think it's him."_

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 15:_ The Fastest Man Alive

"What're we going to do?" David asked. "We can't reach Dick on the radiolink." He and Terry were standing in front of the cryotube containing the Martian Manhunter.

"Rescuing Bruce and Evan is our first priority," Terry said, then hesitated. "But we can't exactly leave them here either." They had checked the other tubes, but neither of them recognized any of the six other people.

"If we stay here too long, we'll probably get caught," David pointed out. Terry grimaced as he debated on what to do. It was likely that they would regain contact with Dick once they stepped back out of the room, but it was possible that they might not be able to come back for the two Leaguers.

"Are you sure it's them?" David asked. "What if they're clones?" Terry bent closer to examine the control panel. It looked like he'd be able to wake them up, but he wasn't sure.

"If we get them out, the alarms will probably go off," Terry said. He studied David for a moment before smirking.

"What?" David asked.

"I have an idea," Terry smirked. He handed his tracking device to David. "Here, you can follow the signal to find Bruce and your uncle." David took the device and raised an eyebrow at his friend.

"Yeah...and what are you going to do?"

"Get them out."

"That's crazy McGinnis! I can't leave you by yourself!"

"That all depends on you, aren't you supposed to be the Fastest Man Alive?"

There was a long pause before an identical smirk crossed David's face as well. He looked once more at the tracker before tossing Terry a lopsided salute.

"Don't get yourself killed Supreme Commander. I don't want to have to answer to Dana."

"Get going Flash."

There was a sudden gust of wind as the Flash zoomed out of the room and down the corridor. Batman turned around and began to work on the control systems. The time for secrecy had ended.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Dick glared at the computer screen. What the hell was going on over there?

"Terry...David?"

There was static, then...

_"Mr. Grayson, it's David."_

"Where's Terry?"

_"He's busy. We've had a change of plans, so I've got to hurry. Talk to you later."_

"Change of plans? What are you...David! Dammit," Dick swore. What were they doing? Sections of the compound's computer layout had started blinking red, indicating that the alarms had been activated.

"Terry?" he tried again.

_"..Dic...bit busy...alk later..."_

"Terry!"

There was no answer and Dick massaged his forehead. _Teenagers. _Had he and Wally been that bad at that age? He paused then and frowned. Terry and David were smart kids. Something must have happened that had caused this reckless change of plans.

But what?

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Whoa!"

David swerved out of the way as hidden weapons began to discharge at him. He checked the tracker again before taking a left turn down a hallway. He unexpectantly came to a dead end. A snap of air caused him to whirl around to see that a temporary wall had snapped down from the ceiling, attempting to block him off.

The Flash smirked as he placed his hands on the wall in front of him. The wall and ceiling began to shake as his hands vibrated through the solid material. David stepped through just as a force field snapped on behind him. Without a microsecond of hesitation, the young speedster zoomed on through the compound.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Terry lifted the disorientated Martian out of the cryotube. The man groaned as his eyes fluttered open.

"What…where am I?" J'onn J'onzz rubbed the back of his head weakly.

"Everything's going to be okay," Terry assured him quickly. "Sit here a sec while I get Superwoman out."

"Super…?"

Terry ignored the confused Leaguer as he ran towards Kara Kent. As he had suspected, he had caused the alarms to go off by deactivating one of the cryotubes. He didn't have much time.

Nearly two minutes later, Kara Kent was sitting weakly on the floor next to J'onn J'onzz. Terry was checking Superwoman's pulse when the door swished open. He rolled over and flung a batarang at the man who had entered.

"Batman?" Debray asked in surprise. Terry grimaced at the sight of the cyborg. This wasn't going to be fun.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Alexandra Luthor glared as she tried to figure out the situation. She immediately suspected the Justice League, but she wasn't sure what their objectives were. If they were after Waller, she wasn't here.

She had thought they were after Bruce Wayne, until the alarms in the cryogenics lab began to go off. Luthor had immediately sent Debray to investigate. Chameleon was still a long ways off and Jon-El…

"What do you want me to do?" Jon-El asked. Luthor paused a moment before turning around.

"Take Wayne and Kae. I want them out of here."

"What about you?"

"I have to wipe my files." Fortunately, Alexandra didn't have all of her files here, and of what she did, there were backup files that she had hidden elsewhere.

Her fingers danced over the keyboard as her mind raced. There were at least two people, possibly more. Who had the League sent? Who…

Batman. The kid must have somehow been able to track Wayne. If Jon-El took him, then they could be tracked to a new location. She quickly spoke into the clone's radiolink.

"Jon-El, Wayne might have some sort of tracking device on him. Get rid of it."

"_Yes ma'am." _

……………………………………………………………………………………………

David, incidentally, reached the chamber holding Bruce and Evan a mere three seconds before Jon-El. The two stared at each other in surprise as they froze in front of the sealed doors.

"Uh…who are you?" David asked. "You one of Luthor's toadies?" The teenager barely ducked as the clone's fist came flying at him. However, David gave a yelp as twin laser beams hit him in the chest.

David flew back and hit the wall with a crack. His vision blurred momentarily as Jon-El smashed through the wall. The clone had decided not to waste time entering the code.

Jon-El gave a cry of surprise as a red blur flew into him. Something punched his face, which of course caused him no harm. The red blur gave a hiss before pummeling its fists into the half-Kryptonian's chest.

Laser beams shot out of his eyes again, but the blur was gone. Jon-El jumped back up and flew through the gaping hole in the wall. He rushed at the Flash and caught him in a headlock.

"Da…Flash!" Bruce yelled. Evan stared in horror as the clone held his nephew in a choke hold.

David grimaced as he heard Bruce faintly yell something about using his powers. Use his…he couldn't hardly think.

"I told you, you can't beat me," Jon-El said.

"I'm…the…Fastest…Man…Alive," David gasped. Jon-El gave a start as David's hands suddenly clasped onto his arm and began to vibrate violently. The clone was forced to let go as he felt his flesh begin to burn.

David staggered a step before whipping around and grabbing a hold of the clone's skull. His hand started to shake. The half-Kryptonian screamed painfully, churning the eighteen year old's heart. David quickly let go and grabbed Bruce and Evan before zooming off through the compound.

Jon-El staggered angrily to his feet. His head hurt like hell. He took a moment to curse quite creatively before taking off after the Flash.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Hey Spaz Man, why don't we give up and call it a day? Luthor's probably missing her pet monkey," Terry taunted. He leapt out of the way as Debray fired at him. Several cryotubes smashed behind him and the teenager sincerely hoped that they weren't ones with people in them. He was doing everything he could to keep Debray away from the still weak and disorientated Martian Manhunter and Superwoman.

"I'll have your head boy!" Debray yelled. "I should have killed you when I had de chance!"

"But you didn't, did you Bananas for Brains?"

Debray gave an enraged yell at the insult as Terry flung a batarang that sliced through several wires underneath the Frenchman's left ear. Bruce had always advocated that Batman should always be silent, so as to intimidate his opponents. However, Terry had discovered that mouthing off accomplished a similar purpose. It tended to piss people off.

He couldn't help it if he liked to talk.

Terry tackled the cyborg and punched him in the face. The Frenchman gave a grunt as Terry slammed another fist into his stomach.

A shock of electricity burnt Terry as Debray grabbed a hold of his suit. Twisting wires from his hands began to connect to his suit, slowly draining the power from it. Terry tried to slam his fists against the Frenchman, but instead found that the suit wouldn't let him.

Debray punched him. The bitter taste of blood entered his mouth and Terry knew that his mouth was going to be swelled up the next day. The Frenchman reached back to punch him again, but a sudden hand held it back.

"I have no idea what's going on and I still feel like crap," Kara Kent growled. "But I'm _not _in a good mood." Kara punched the cyborg, sending him flying through the wall. A flash of laser beams severed the wires that were still connected to the batsuit.

Terry gave a painful grin as he regained control over his suit. He stood up and studied the blonde haired woman in front of him.

"What's going on?" Kara asked. "Who are you? You're not Bruce."

"Uh…"

"I don't believe we have no time for that at the moment, Superwoman." Terry and Kara looked over to see J'onn J'onzz slowly making his way towards them. "We should get out of here first."

"Right J'onn," Kara said. "We'll…"

A red flash zoomed into the room. Kara and J'onn blinked in surprise as the Flash appeared with two men, one who looked strangely familiar. The old man's blue eyes widened in surprise as he studied the occupants of the room.

"Batman…" Flash started. There was a crash as David hit the wall. Jon-El halted as he also took studied the room. His head tilted curiously as he looked at Kara and J'onn. There was a sonic boom as a flash of red hit him full force, sending them tumbling out into the hallway.

"We need to get out of here," Terry said. He and Bruce exchanged looks and the older man nodded. "Superwoman," he continued. "I need you two to get Bruce and Mr. Kae out of here. I need to help Flash." The two Leaguers still didn't appear to have yet recovered all their strength.

Kara and J'onn's eyes snapped over to the elderly man next to the young Batman. Bruce smirked slightly before his eyes narrowed at them.

"Don't just stand around Kent, do what he said," Bruce snapped. There was a boom from the hallway as Flash and Jon-El continued their battle. "Terry, go help David and get out of here!"

"I called the car," Terry said on his way out. "It should be here soon!" He sprinted out into the corridor and activated the boosters on his feet. Terry spread his wings and shot down the now devastated hallway.

"_Terry! What the hell is going on?" _Dick yelled. The interference in the radiolink had disappeared the moment Terry had left the cryochamber.

"Hard to explain," Terry said quickly. "Flash is fighting some freak with superstrength and I'm going to help."

"_What about…"_

"Superwoman and the Martian Manhunter are getting Bruce and Mr. Kae out."

"_Okay…wait…WHAT?"_

"Busy now, talk later," Terry said.

"_McGinnis!"_

Terry gave a grunt as the wall to his left exploded. David came crashing through, sending the two teenagers sprawling. Terry recovered enough to pull the dazed David out of the way as Jon-El flew at them.

The red head looked worse for wear. His grandfather's suit was torn in places and a shock of red hair was sticking through a ripped section of the mask.

"Flash!"

The teenager groaned in reply. Terry rolled them out of the way and punched the incoming clone. The batsuit greatly enhanced his physical strength, but it still did little more than to knock the half-Kryptonian back a few feet.

At a sudden thought, Terry pulled out a small set of objects that he had recently pilfered from one of Bruce's old utility belts. He flung them at the ground, causing an explosion of foul smelling gas.

Terry scooped up David and flew down the corridor. Hopefully the gas would slow him down. Just in case, Terry stuck a special batarang in a passing wall. Three seconds later, it detonated, causing the ceiling and walls to begin to collapse.

"McGinnis," David suddenly groaned. "Put me down."

"We don't have time to stop," Terry snapped. "This place is coming down." Perhaps that explosive batarang hadn't been the best idea.

"I've got just enough energy to get us out of here," David shot back. Terry relented at a glare from his friend.

Seconds later, a now physically ill Terry felt himself being lowered onto the grass. A wave of fresh, night air revived him enough to keep from throwing up. Being dragged along by a speeding David did little for the stomach. There was a soft thump as David collapsed on the ground next to him.

"Tomorrow's going to suck," David groaned. "I still have to write a paper."

"Oh yeah," Terry muttered. He had to write a paper too, not to mention his chemistry homework. "School's going to be hell."

A trio of three shadows loomed over them, underneath the bright crescent moon. The teenagers looked up to see Bruce looking down at them. His mouth quirked up into the faintest hint of a smile as he studied the two young heroes. Rex Stewart and Donna Troy also studied the young duo, who as of yet, had refused to budge a muscle. They had arrived right after J'onn, Kara, Bruce, and Evan had exited the abandoned warehouse. The two surprised Leaguers had then been greeted to the sight of David and Terry zooming out of the building.

"So…" Rex said slowly. "What'd we miss?"


	16. The Day After

_Disclaimer: I don't own DC Comics (unfortunately)._

This chapter deals mostly with events that were discussed in Chapter nine, Vanishing Point. I write this as a reminder in case anyone feels the need to check back and read anything they've forgotten.

_**Recap: **David and Terry have managed to rescue Bruce and Evan, as well as J'onn J'onzz and Kara Kent. Rex Stewart and Donna Troy arrived to help, but were a little late._

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 16:_ The Day After

Bruce and Dick sat silently across from each other, not knowing what to say.

It was nearly seven in the morning now and both men had been up early. Bruce had been surprised to learn about Dick's involvement, but hadn't had a chance to think more about it until now. After their initial rescue, everyone had been transported up to the Watchtower so that the boys could have their injuries looked over. Bruce and Evan had done their best to shield David from curious eyes, but it was the two teenagers themselves who had finally chased off the other Leaguers.

Despite their injuries, both teenagers had insisted on returning home so they could get their homework done for the next day. David and Terry had both become very irritable as a result of exhaustion and the realization that they still had to get up the next morning for class. After ten minutes of trying to talk to them, Clark had finally given up and retreated from the room. David perhaps had a bit more of Linda Park's temper than Bruce had originally thought.

Bruce had talked them into staying the night as his house, although this was mostly to hide Terry's still swollen face from his mother. Terry had called home to say that he was staying the night at a friend's house. Then the two teenagers had stayed up to four in the morning to get their homework done. Bruce strongly suspected that they had ended cheating off each other.

Evan had gone home after returning to Gotham. Bruce knew that he would be returning later in the evening to discuss David. The teenager hadn't said anything, but both men knew that he was going to want to continue as the Flash.

"Why didn't you tell me Bruce?" Dick finally asked. He met Bruce's eyes for a moment and the older man could see the hidden pain in there.

"I was going to," Bruce admitted reluctantly. "I didn't right away because I didn't want the boy to be overwhelmed. The League was practically fighting each other to even get a glimpse of him last night. Barbara only found out because she saw him after someone had tried to kill us. You can't blame her for asking questions."

"No," Dick said quietly. "He looks so much like Wally." They were silent for a long time at that. Bruce remembered when he had first seen David. At first, despite how illogical it was to think it, he had thought it was actually Wally standing there.

"I'm sorry Dick," Bruce mumbled. Of all the people who should have known, Dick should have been the first. He and Wally had been best friends. Dick's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected apology, but only nodded his head in reply.

"I...do understand your reasoning Bruce," Dick said hesitatingly. It was a peace offering and both he and Bruce knew it. "The kid wasn't ready to be thrown headlong into the League." Dick paused suddenly and looked at his watch. "Shouldn't they be up by now?" he wondered. "I think school starts in an hour."

He and Bruce looked at each other before looking up at the stairs. Both of them had vivid memories concerning tired teenagers in the morning. None of their memories were very pleasant.

"Do you want to wake the Living Dead or should I?" Bruce asked dryly.

"You've already volunteered," Dick said quickly, becoming very interested in his cup of coffee. "I don't feel like losing my head this morning."

Bruce sighed as he made his way up the stairs. He'd had a hard enough time getting Tim and Dick up the mornings when they were younger. He had a feeling that Terry and David were going to be much worse.

He was right.

"McGinnis! Kae! Get out of bed!"

The two teenagers groaned in the room that they were sharing. They had ended up crashing in one of the spare bedrooms that had two beds. Terry placed a pillow over his head while David pretended not to have heard him. It was likely that he hadn't. Neither of them were fully awake yet.

Bruce walked over and ripped the bed covers off both of the boys, causing a chorus of complaints. He brandished his cane at them until he successfully managed to get them to roll out of bed with the speed of a couple drunken sloths. Bruce stood there a moment to glare at them, but then realized that his effort was wasted since they were too tired to notice. He went back downstairs to the kitchen. One minute later, Ace came bounding up the stairs to begin shepherding the two young men into getting ready.

"How do they look?" Dick asked cautiously as Bruce returned..

"Not human."

Fifteen minutes later, both of them came trudging down the stairs, followed by a vigilant Ace. David had ended up borrowing one of the extra sets of clothes that Terry kept at the mansion. Terry and David stumbled into the kitchen and ended up drinking an entire pot of sugar enriched coffee between them. Bruce and Dick exchanged amused looks.

"Perhaps...I should drive them to school," Dick suggested.

"That might be wise," Bruce agreed. Ten minutes and three threats later, Bruce and Dick managed to get the two of them outside to the car. Bruce thought that perhaps fighting Brainiac had been easier than this. The car finally pulled out of sight and Bruce headed back into the mansion with Ace. His cell phone rang a minute later.

"What is it Shayera?" he asked.

_"How are our two heroes doing this morning?"_ she asked.

"Dick just left to take the Walking Dead to school." Shayera laughed a moment before turning serious.

_"Clark's called a meeting.. Do you want to come here or stay at the mansion and listen in?"_

"I'll come there. Bye Shayera." Bruce clicked off the phone and prepared to leave.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

When Bruce arrived at the council room, nearly everyone else was already there. The three Stewarts were sitting next to Virgil, Richie, Oliver Queen and his son. Red Tornado was seated by Clark, Kara Kent, and J'onn. Bruce's eyes paused on the Martian, who was currently eating his way through a bag of Oreos.

"Have a seat Bruce," John said. Bruce sat down next to John as he surveyed the group.

"Who else is coming?" Bruce asked. He was answered a second later by the strong figure who strode gracefully into the chamber.

Diana swept her eyes around the table before choosing a seat next to Ethan Queen. Bruce covertly watched the Amazon beauty as her eyes studied the group before pausing on him.

"Bruce," she said, somewhat surprised.

"Diana." There was a pause.

"I see you've adopted another one, old man," she said with a smirk. Bruce's mouth quirked slightly in reply.

"He's the first one with super powers," he answered dryly.

The others exchanged looks but didn't say anything about the subject of David. They had tried confronting Bruce about it the other night, but the aging billionaire had railed into them instead. He'd made it quite clear that he was protecting the young man from a life that had been unexpectantly thrust on him. An angry Bruce had quite bluntly told them that the Justice League and the legacy of the Flash was a decision that the teenager was going to have to make on his own. He wasn't about to let the young man feel pressured into taking up a mantle that he might not want or be ready for. With Evan Kae watching silently the whole time, the other Leaguers had to grudgingly admit that Bruce had a point.

That of course still didn't mean that they weren't still sore about it. They all, however, held in their complaints out of fear of Bruce.

"I think everyone who needs to be here, is here," Clark said. "Virgil, why don't you tell us what you found?" Static Shock stood up and moved to where everyone could see him. His fingers tapped a computer console and opened up a holographic image. Bruce studied what were obviously different samples of skin cells before looking at the younger man.

"The sample on the left is Martian DNA," Bruce stated. "The one on the right is Kryptonian and the one in the middle shows traces of both genetic streams." The others gave a start at that. Virgil grimaced, but wasn't the least bit surprised that the Gotham billionaire had already jumped ahead of him.

"You've all heard about my fight with the shapeshifter in Waller's house, right?" he asked. All heads nodded and Virgil continued. "This skin sample in the middle was on my clothes and it came from him. The League's computers analyzed the sample and it appears that his genetic structure is a mix of J'onn's, Kara's, and Lex Luthor's DNA." Both Kara and J'onn's lips tightened noticeably.

"That explains some things," Ethan Queen said. "But I still don't understand how Kara and J'onn even ended up in that cryochamber."

"Yes, that's true," Diana said. "You two disappeared about twenty-five years ago during the fight with Solus and the Key. I remember. Wally had defeated the Key and disappeared into the speed force and you two vanished a few hours later during your fight with Solus."

"Yes," J'onn said quietly. "I'm afraid that I remember little about it."

"Yeah," Kara added. "I remember killing Solus, but after that, it's blank." Everyone was silent for a moment.

"Lex must have been behind it, perhaps he and his daughter were even working together. Alexandra would have been in her early twenties, if I recall," Clark said bitterly.

"She would have been nineteen," Bruce corrected. He'd checked up on this before arriving. "And Kent...don't forget that clone I saw."

"Jon-El," Clark said quietly. Bruce nodded. The Kryptonian was silent for a long time. He was disturbed by this apparent clone of his dead son.

"Waller's still missing as well," Shayera pointed out. "Luthor has her somewhere."

"And knowing Luthor, she and this Jon-El managed to escape the compound," Oliver Queen pointed out. Bruce rubbed his eyes a moment as he thought. There were far too many unanswered questions for his liking, and he said as much out loud. The others nodded in agreement.

"Bruce," Clark said hesitantly, knowing he was treading on delicate ground. "We may need Terry on this...and David, if he's willing. I mean, if it's okay with his uncle that is." Bruce nodded his head, which Clark knew meant _'We'll see.'_

"Do you..." Shayera started, and then paused. Everyone looked over at her and she continued. "Do you think it's possible that Wally survived? J'onn and Kara are alive and we had all thought they were dead." There were some looks of hope around the room.

"No," J'onn said quietly. "I saw him. He disappeared into the speed force."

"Yeah, I was there too," Kara said just as quietly. Her voice shook as she continued. To her, it had all happed only yesterday. "I saw it happen. He...he smiled at me and told me it would be okay. Then he disappeared." She swallowed a hard lump in her throat.

_"Wally!"_

_"Get back Kara! You have to stop Solus!"_

_"But Wally!" Kara pleaded. Her eyes were fastened on the red garbed man in front of her, whose body was quickly fading as they spoke. J'onn couldn't help because he was too busy fighting the ex-Linear man nearby. Wally smiled warmly at her. It was one of his infamous smiles that made you want to smile back._

_"It'll be okay Kara," Wally said. "Everything's going to be okay. Just...tell Linda and the kids that I'm sorry. Iris's twentieth birthday is tomorrow. Tell my little girl Happy Birthday, okay?"_

_"WALLY!"_

_"Goodbye Kara."_

Kara closed her eyes. Her mouth trembled as tears slowly began to leak down her face.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"You two look like hell."

David and Terry picked their heads off of their desks enough to look blurrily up at one of their classmates. Jamal Armstrong had been one of Terry's friends when he had still been on the wrestling team. The African-American teenager shook his head at the other two, who seemed to barely be alive.

"You two get into a fight with some Jokerz or something last night?" he asked. David mumbled a reply. Terry quirked a smile at him, but broke off whatever answer he was going to give when Dana came storming up. She placed her hands on her hips and glared at the two, especially Terry. Jamal inched his way away from the brewing storm and retreated to his desk.

"Okay Terry, what's going on?" Dana demanded. "You two disappeared during lunch yesterday and never came back. Then the power suddenly went off in the school around the same time that Max disappeared. Then you two show up this morning, looking like this." She glared down at them, causing the two of them to groan.

_Damn you McGinnis, _David thought. _I told you that you should have told her. Now you're girlfriend's going to kill us. _

"I had a family emergency," David said instead. It wasn't exactly a lie; it _had _been a family emergency. "Terry gave me a ride home."

"You don't drive to school?" Dana asked suspiciously.

"Unfortunately, no," David replied tiredly. "I don't have a car." _I hope she buys this. You're going to owe me for this one McGinnis._

"Okay," she said. "Then _why _do both of you look like you've been in a fight." _McGinnis, I'm going to kill you, _David promised silently.

"I got into a fight with some Jokerz," he lied. "They were trying to pick a fight with me and I..er...didn't walk away. McGinnis had to come save my butt." Dana raised an eyebrow at him before looking at her boyfriend.

"_Terry_...is this true?" Terry mumbled and nodded his head. Dana stared down at them for a long moment before sighing in exasperation.

"_Men_," she complained. Dana then smirked suddenly as she kissed Terry on the cheek. "So..." she said slyly. "Did you teach those Jokerz a lesson?"

"Oh yeah," Terry said dryly. "And I think we pissed them off really good."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Alexandra Luthor was not happy. She hadn't been pleased when Bruce Wayne and Evan Kae had escaped. She had been very unhappy when J'onn J'onzz and Kara Kent had been rescued. She had most unhappy when her compound had been destroyed, nearly with her still inside. Jon-El had gotten the two of them out at the last moment.

Luthor looked down at the picture of Terry McGinnis and David Kae getting into Bruce's car. She had been surprised when the half-Kryptonian clone had told her about his fight with the Flash. After some thought, it hadn't taken her long to connect the dots.

Evan Kae had been with Bruce Wayne because his nephew was the new Flash.

Alex had compared the boy's image with that of Iris West Cullen and Wallace West. She could tell that the boy was related, but as far as she had heard, Iris West had died before giving birth. That obviously wasn't the case.

She knew she couldn't move against him, or Bruce and McGinnis. The Justice League would be on guard now and would be monitoring those two boys. After a moment, she pushed away from her desk and stood up. Perhaps it was time that she spoke with Amanda Waller again.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"How was school today?" Bruce asked. It was nearly eight o'clock. Terry and David both came in with Evan Kae at the same time.

"The Dark Lord of Sith gave us a pop quiz in chemistry," Terry muttered. David had an equally dark look on his face and Bruce decided not to ask.

"McGinnis, I'm giving you the night off," Bruce said. "But I expect you to do your school work and to get some sleep. You'll need to catch up on both. It's going to be rough for a while."

"But what about..."

"J'onn volunteered to watch Gotham for you tonight," Bruce answered. "You can thank him later."

"Um..." David said. "About that...I want to help." The other three looked at him. Evan pushed down a wave of anxiety.

"David..." he said.

"I want to do this Uncle Evan! Look, I know it's dangerous, but I want to help people," David said stubbornly. Bruce chose not to say anything yet. He had seen that same look of stubbornness on Linda Park West. The boy wasn't going to be persuaded out of this. Evan looked at him for a long moment and finally sighed as he came to the same conclusion.

"Actually," Evan admitted. "I was expecting this." He paused and glanced at Bruce and the other man nodded. "All right you can do it..." David's eyes lit up. "But only..._only _if you listen to Bruce. You are to consider him your guardian when you're wearing that mask. You are also to keep up on your grades. Is that clear?" he asked sternly. David grinned one of the infamous West grins in reply.

"Schway," Terry said. "But what about a costume? He tore up his grandpa's suit." Bruce smirked a bit at that before reaching down under his desk.

"An..associate gave this to me," Bruce said as he pulled out a box. "I wasn't going to give it to you unless you decided on your own that you wanted to do this." He handed the box to David and the teenager tore it open.

"Whoa," he said. It was a new Flash suit.

"Try it on," Terry urged. David zoomed around a corner and zoomed back a second later. He grinned under his mask as he showed off the new suit.

Unlike the old Flash suit, the mask covered the entire face, like Terry's cowl. The mask also contained a radiolink and a videolink, like the new bat cowl. Other than that, the suit was basically the same as the old one except for a few small updates. The red was a shade darker than the old suits. The lightning bolts on the mask were also slightly smaller than the originals.

"This is schway," David said. He turned his wrist over and the time and date appeared digitally on his suit.

"There's an internet link in your mask, like Terry's," Bruce explained. "You can access it if you need to. Your mask will also allow you to use infrared vision and night vision."

"Schway." David zipped upstairs to look in a mirror. He came back down a few minutes later.

"When do I start?"


	17. Tracking Targets

_Disclaimer: I don't own DC Comics (unfortunately)._

_Author's note: Finally! A new chapter! I really should be studying for Japanese, but the Huntress has her crossbow pointed at me. You see, I have a major Huntress/Question fic called __Shades of Avarice__ that I'm going to write when this story and __This Ain't the Golden years__ is finished. She's a little impatient._

_**Recap: **__David has decided to take up that mantle of the Flash. Also, the Justice League discovered that Chameleon, Alexandra Luthor's subordinate, was bioengineered from the combined DNA of J'onn, Kara, and Lex Luthor. Kara and J'onn also said that they do not remember how they ended up in Luthor's cryogenics lab._

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 17:_ Tracking Targets

Green Arrow, also known as Ethan Queen, hummed to himself as he did a logistics check on the Watchtower's computer system. It had been nearly a week since the incident with Terry McGinnis and David Kae.

"Must you _hum_?" A vexed voice asked. Ethan looked over at the Shining Knight, who was trying to do a background check on some new villain. James was the oldest son of Sir Justin and seemed to have a bit shorter temper than his father.

"I like to hum," Ethan Queen said cheerfully. He switched tunes and began to whistle the Monty Python theme song. Shining Knight shot him an agitated look before turning his blonde head back to his research. Green Arrow smirked as he drummed his fingers along to the song, watching with amusement as Sir James again shot him a glare.

"What?" Ethan asked innocently. The blonde man gave a sigh and turned around to pointedly ignore him.

_That guy really needs a sense of humor_, he thought. Green Arrow turned around as the doors swished open to reveal Batman and the Flash.

"Come on Flash, it'll be fun. Dick won't suspect a thing."

"When are we going to do it? We still haven't stopped Luthor."

"What are you two up to?" Ethan asked. He had gotten along immediately with the two younger men. He had never met Terry until this week.

"_You're Green Arrow, huh?" Terry asked. "You're shorter than I thought."_

"_I'm not short," Ethan corrected. "I'm just not overly fond of heights."_

The two teenagers put on an innocent air as they walked over to join him. The Flash stared curiously at the control panel. He was still having trouble believing that he was actually part of the Justice League, even if on a part time basis.

"You guys have any luck finding Waller?" Terry asked. Ethan shook his head no.

"J'onn's been trying to locate her, but he can't pick up her presence anywhere. He thinks that some kind of energy field may be blocking him," Green Arrow answered.

"Mrs. Stewart told me that Luthor will probably be making a move soon," David said.

"Mrs. Stewart?" Ethan asked. "She hates being called that. Why don't you just call her Shayera?"

"We still call Dick Mr. Grayson," Terry smirked. "It really pisses him off."

"_Mr. Grayson," David said cheerfully. Dick glared at him._

"_For the last time, call me Dick!"_

Ethan chuckled as he tapped some commands into the keyboard. He had a habit of irritating people as well, just for the fun of it.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Amanda Waller glared thoughtfully around at her bare cell. She inwardly cursed her aching bones, the early stages of arthritis.

Damn that Luthor. As soon as she had an opportunity, she would wring the woman's neck.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"She's been too quiet," Diana said. "We've been monitoring Luthor around the clock, but we haven't picked up anything."

"Of course not," Bruce said. "She's too smart for that."

"Even so," Shayera said. "We need to be on a guard. Even if Luthor hasn't acted yet, you know that she's planning something."

Bruce didn't reply. He merely took a sip of coffee as his mind yet again tried to piece together her next move.

"You know, almost all of us are here," Diana said quietly. Shayera and Bruce's lips both tightened visibly as they thought about what was on all their minds. Almost every one of the original seven members of the Justice League was still alive.

Everyone except for Wally.

"David's really nice," Shayera said quietly. "John and I took him out to lunch on Saturday."

"He's a little more serious than Wally," Diana said.

"Not necessarily," Bruce smirked. "When he's with McGinnis he can be quite the troublemaker." This caused a chuckle from the other two women. What was the Flash if he didn't cause a little bit of trouble?

"He's been all over the news," Shayera added. "Especially since he saved those people when that office building collapsed in Keystone."

"Has he seen the Flash museum yet?" Diana asked curiously.

"I believe he saw it when he was a child," Bruce answered. "But I'm sure he'll be making another trip there in the near future."

"Maybe he can take his friend Max there," Shayera said slyly. She'd gotten the young man to admit that he had a girlfriend that he had just begun dating.

Bruce's lips twitched at that.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Alexandra looked up as Jon-El walked in. The half-Kryptonian clone had been moody since his encounter with the Flash. Luthor knew that he was itching for a rematch.

"When do I get to fight him?" the young man asked. Luthor smirked. As usual, Jon-El cut straight to the point.

"Soon," she answered. She looked over at where Chameleon was reading the morning's news. Fernand Debray, on the other hand, was scowling to himself. He was still angry that Superwoman had prevented him from killing Batman.

"You'll get your chance soon Debray," Luthor said. She knew that the Frenchman wanted nothing more than to kill the dark haired teenager.

"How soon?" the Frenchman asked irately. Alexandra looked over at Chameleon. She and the meta-human exchanged glances.

"How are our targets doing?" she asked. Chameleon grinned to himself. For the last few days, he had been tracking the movements of Dana Tan, Maxine Gibson, as well as Mary and Matthew McGinnis.

"They're doing quite well," Chameleon answered.

………………………………………………..

_I know this was a short chapter, but I wanted to update. The next one will be longer._


	18. Keystone City

_Disclaimer: I don't own DC Comics (unfortunately)._

_Author's note: Me again, I decided I had some time so I updated. I'd also like to blame Wally West for the speeding ticket I got this morning while driving to school._

_Wally: Me? What'd I do?_

_The authoress: I was thinking about ideas for the new chapter and wasn't paying any attention to my speed. Therefore, I blame you._

_Wally: It's not my fault!_

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 18:_ Keystone City

David looked around him with awe as he and Max walked by a fountain in Keystone City. There was Flash memorabilia everywhere!

"Look's like you're a celebrity now," Max said dryly, causing David to redden slightly. He wasn't used to being in the spotlight. She smiled and looped her arm through David's as they continued on towards the Flash museum.

"_Hey Kid," Huntress called. David zoomed over to the cynical redhead. Elizabeth Szasz motioned towards a blinking light on the screen._

"_What?" David asked. Elizabeth smirked at him, the red haired image of her mother, Helena._

"_There's a situation in Keystone City, you want to go check it out? If I remember right, that's where your grandparents were from."_

"_Sure, I'll go," David replied. Inside though, he was very nervous. As of yet, he hadn't made much of an appearance of the Flash. Perhaps it was fitting that he do it in Keystone._

"_I'm setting the coordinates," Elizabeth said. "I'll transport you down."_

"David," Max said suddenly. "Can you show me where it was?" David looked around and pulled her into the shadows. Then they zoomed several blocks over. His girlfriend gaped at the demolished area, which had been mostly cleared by the city crews.

_David raced by the speeding police cars and fire trucks. He sidetracked only once to pull a little boy out of the way of a speeding car and handed the child to his astonished parents._

_There was a cloud of black dust in the air, as well as the smell of an electrical fire. David zoomed through the police blockade to see that a large office building had collapsed, as well as several smaller buildings beside it._

"_We need back up!" One of the firefighters yelled. "We have people trapped in there!" The man turned suddenly as he caught a sight of red._

"_This is a restricted area…" The firefighter froze when he saw the red garbed superhero at his side._

"_How many people are in there?" David questioned hurriedly. The man blinked as he attempted to hide his shock. Then he quickly regained his professionalism as he pointed to the wreckage._

"_There's at least two dozen civilians still inside," the firefighter said. "Possibly more. We also have about seven of our own people in there."_

"_I'm on it," David said. He zoomed off into the collapsed building, leaving the fireman to stare after him in wonder._

Max grinned at the astonished look on David's face. He was still shocked at all of the attention he was getting. She knew full well that he was still only coming to understand how much of an impact that the Flash had had on the cities of Keystone and Central City.

"You helped a lot of people Dave," she said. She kissed him on the cheek, causing the red head to blush.

"_It'll be okay Ma'am, we'll get you out of here," David said calmly. He picked up the dark skinned woman, who looked to be in her sixties or seventies._

"_You're really him, aren't you?" she asked in surprise. David hesitated a long second before answering._

"_Not quite," he answered politely. The silver haired woman smiled at him and patted his cheek affectionately._

"_It doesn't matter," she answered. "You're the Flash and that's good enough for me."_

_David looked down at her in surprise before racing out of the building. His heart pounded in his chest as he increasingly became aware of the crowd gathering outside the police blockade. Some of the older citizens were cheering for him._

_The young Flash paused in embarrassed wonder as more people were trying to clamber for a look at him. He gave a small, shy wave to them before speeding back into the wreckage to bring out the last remaining survivors._

"Did you watch the news?" David asked. The Keystone media had immediately jumped him for an interview after the teenager had cleared some of the rubble away. He had created a whirlwind of air to move over some debris that was blocking the street.

The teenager had been speechless when he saw several news reporters running towards him. He had even considered making an escape, but didn't want to be impolite. The thought of what his mother or grandfather might do also strengthened his resolve.

"_Flash! Flash! Can we have an interview?"_

"_Flash!"_

"_Oh my God! It's really the Flash!"_

_The stunned David froze as they began to gather around him. He didn't like being the center of attention!_

"_Uh…Hi," David stammered. 'Crap, now that sounds intelligent', he thought. The news reporters continued to press around him excitedly as they called out question after question._

"_Where have you been?"_

"_Flash, are you part of the Justice League?"_

"_What do you have to say about what happened here today?"_

_David stared at the expectant faces around him. Suddenly, he felt very overwhelmed. He wanted nothing more than to get out of there, but he realized that it wouldn't be the polite thing to do. They were expecting him to say something._

"_Uh…I'm glad I was able to help," David said lamely. "I was just doing my job."_

"_Flash," one lady said. "Keystone has been without the Flash since the last one was killed by Grodd. Do you have a comment on that? Was she a relation?" David felt a flash of anger. What business was it of theirs if he was or not? He wasn't going to give anything away. He would do anything to make sure that his uncle and friends were kept safe._

"_No comment," David said flatly. As Bruce had noticed earlier, the young speedster also had inherited some of Linda Park's temper. The woman appeared taken aback at his answer._

"_But Flash…" she persisted, but the still irritated David interrupted her._

"_Look Lady, I'm the Flash," David answered, glaring hotly at her. His voice unconsciously gained some more strength. "I'll do what ever I can to protect the people of this city as well as the rest of the world. It was a bad thing that happened to…" David was about to say 'to my Mom'. "…to the last Flash. She died bravely while protecting the ones she loved. It's my dream that I will be able to do half as well as she and her father."_

_With that, David zoomed off._

"I saw it," Max said dryly. "Terry laughed when you said 'No comment.' Even the Old Man smirked."

"He did?" David asked in surprise.

"Yeah, and he muttered something about 'Linda' too."

"Linda was my Grandma. Mr. Stewart said that she had had a big temper," he answered. Max flashed him a grin before pulling him up the steps to the Flash museum.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

"What're you guys doing?" Terry asked suspiciously. He glared into his little brother's room. Matt and a red haired friend of his were perched on his brother's bed.

"None of _your _business," Matt said. He stuck his tongue out at Terry while quickly pulling a blanket around him. Terry raised an eyebrow before quickly charging in to yank the blanket off his brother.

Terry burst out laughing.

"It's not funny!" Matt yelled. The younger McGinnis was dressed in black, with a red Batman symbol taped to his chest. He was also wearing a makeshift black cape.

"Twip," Terry smirked. Matt stuck his tongue out.

"Oh yeah," the boy countered. "Well Batman's a lot cooler than you!"

"Oh yeah?" Terry asked dryly. "Well, he is cool. He's better than the other superheroes."

"That's not true!" Matt's friend protested. "The Flash is better!"

Terry looked over to see that the other boy was wearing a red shirt and shorts, with a yellow lightning bolt taped to his chest.

"No he's not!" Matt yelled.

"Is too!" his friend protested.

"Hey! Hey!" Terry interrupted. "The Flash isn't that bad. After Batman, he's the second coolest." His younger brother gave him a stubborn look and Terry continued slyly.

"In fact," Terry said. "I heard that they're supposed to be good friends. Anyone that Batman hangs out with has to be schway, right?" His younger brother considered that before grinning.

"Okay," Matt admitted. "But Batman's _still_ cooler. I'd rather have him for a brother than you. You're too lame."

Terry smirked.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

David peered thoughtfully at a statue of some guy called the Mirror Master. Next to him was a small replica of the Trickster.

_Grandpa sure dealt with some weird guys, _he thought.

"David, look at this," Max said. She pulled him over to a large photograph on the wall. David gave a sharp intake of breath as he found himself looking at a picture of his mother and grandfather. Wally was still the Flash and he had an armed draped over his teenaged mother, who was then Kid Flash. They each were wearing identical grins.

"Max," David said quietly. "Do you think I can ever measure up to them?"

"Bruce thinks so," she said quietly. "And you know the old man doesn't just say that about anybody." David blinked back tears. It wouldn't do if someone saw him crying. They might figure out why.

"I…miss them," David admitted. "I know I never knew them, but…I wish my parents and grandparents were still alive. I wish my Uncle Barry was still alive too."

"You're not alone," Max told him. "You have your uncle, me, Terry, Dana, Bruce, and all the others."

They both stumbled as the ground suddenly gave a shake. David caught Max before she could slip and fall.

"What was that?" she asked worriedly. This time they both fell as the ground ans the building again quaked. The statue of Mirror Master crashed onto the floor. They heard the distant sound of sirens.

"I have to go," David said quickly. He lightly kissed Max on the lips and pulled out his Flash ring. Moments later, he raced out of the museum and looked around. Several buildings had been smashed through.

_What happened?_

David gave a yelp as something hard hit him. The young man flew back and crashed into a parked car. He managed to race out of the way just before the car crumbled from a heavy impact.

The Flash gritted his teeth as the figure of Jon-El grinned at him.

………………………………………………

"Hurry up Matt," Terry ordered. His mother had forced him to take Matt down to the video store so he could rent a movie.

Matt didn't answer.

Terry glowered irately as he stalked around the movie shelf to glare at his kid brother. He knew that his brother was there because he had just called him 'ugly' not even ten seconds ago.

"Matt?" Terry said. He paused and came on his guard. With growing anxiety he began to check around each isle, calling out his brother's name. Maybe it was a trick, his brother liked to pull stupid stunts on him.

"Matt? This isn't funny," Terry said, not able to hide the worry in his voice. Something was wrong. There was no way that his younger brother could hide from him. Bruce had trained him too well for that.

Matt was gone.


	19. New Complications

_Disclaimer: I don't own DC Comics (unfortunately)._

_Last Chapter: David and Jon-El are getting ready to face off in Keystone and Terry discovered that his younger brother is missing._

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 19:_ New Complications

"_Bruce, I have a problem."_

Bruce's eyes narrowed as he listened to Terry. The teenager had checked everywhere and couldn't find his younger brother. The old man had no doubt that Matt was missing. Terry was young, but he had good instincts.

"I'll check the security footage," Bruce replied. His aging hands immediately hacked into the store's security system and replayed some of the footage.

"_Matt, would you hurry up?" Terry asked impatiently. Matt stuck his head around the aisle corner._

"_Shut up ugly, I'm almost done!" Matt replied. Terry crossed his arms on the other side of the aisle and glowered. The younger brother stood on the tip of his toes to reach a movie, when he suddenly vanished._

Bruce's eyes narrowed as he replaced the last few seconds in slow motion.

_The green skinned figure of Chameleon flickered briefly next to the boy. He touched the boy and vanished with him a second later._

Bruce's eyes narrowed dangerously as he told Terry what had occurred.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

"What the hell's your problem?" David asked. He zoomed out of the way as Jon-El threw a car at him. The young speedster was trying to drag the fight into a less populated area. But unfortunately, instead of going into the country side like he had planned, they had merely ended up fighting across the Missouri River in Central City, Missouri.

"I don't like losing, that's my problem," Jon-El replied.

"But it was a draw!" David protested. Unfortunately, the half-Kryptonian clone didn't share his point of view. The Flash hissed to himself as a pair of laser beams drilled into his chest.

David managed to grab the fist that threatened to smash his brains in. He latched on and began to vibrate his hands as quickly as possible. The rising heat scorched the half-Kryptonian's skin, forcing him to back off.

The Flash immediately took off and raced around the clone in an ever faster red whirlwind. The air sped faster and faster until a tornado enveloped the raven haired clone.

This, as David quickly discovered, didn't do anything. Jon-El flew out of the top of the cyclone, causing the red haired teenager to smack his head.

"Oh yeah," David muttered. "I forgot about that."

A microsecond later, he was racing alongside the Missouri River, hoping to draw Jon-El away from the twin cities.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Superman, we've got a situation down in Keystone and Central City," Huntress said from the control room. Elizabeth Szasz punched in a few codes as her older sister, Erin Szasz, looked over her shoulder.

"_I'll be right there,"_ Clark replied. Erin Szasz, the new Question (also known collectively as 'Lady Q') answered back.

"Coincidentally Sir, Bruce Wayne is on the line," Erin said. Her face and hair, usually identical to her sister's, was hidden underneath a faceless mask. She gave a grim smirk as she heard Clark swear to himself over the comlink.

"Today's going to suck," Elizabeth muttered. Erin nodded as she ran a hand through her short, temporarily black hair. She wore a blue trench coat like her father, but had spurned the gray fedora.

The Szasz sisters shared an identical smirk that had been inherited from their mother.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Terry's mind whirled faster and faster as he sped his motorcycle towards Bruce's. He had calmly called his mother to inform her that he and Matt had decided to go instead to the movie theaters. She had been irritated, but had believed it.

He figured that he had bought himself perhaps three hours before he would be forced to tell his mother another lie.

The teenager mentally kicked himself for his stupidity. He should have kept his brother at his side the whole time. At least the League would help him. Terry also knew that Bruce had probably informed Commissioner Gordon by now.

He brought the motorcycle to a screeching halt at the sight of the green figure standing in the road.

Chameleon smirked at him as he held up the struggling Matt. Terry's eyes narrowed when he saw not only that his brother had been bound and gagged, but at the nasty bruise that was forming above his right eye.

"Let him go," Terry warned. He slipped a batarang into his right hand. Matt mumbled at him through his gagged mouth. The teenager hoped desperately that the League had sent someone to keep an eye on his mother and girlfriend. Bruce had said that he would make sure that they did.

"Or you'll do what?" Chameleon smirked. "I already know that you have a batarang in your right hand." Terry growled to himself. He should have changed into the batsuit immediately instead of driving to Bruce's first.

"So now what Boy?" the metahuman asked. Matt struggled as he looked at his brother.

"Be careful what you say," Terry warned. His blue eyes narrowed dangerously at the green skinned man.

"Yes, yes," Chameleon continued almost carelessly. He cast a meaningful eye at the boy in his hand. "The Justice League wouldn't let you into their ranks if you were just a mere _boy_, now would they? You and your friend the Flash are their new darlings, from what I understand."

Terry hissed to himself, not knowing what he should do. He knew from the League briefings that Chameleon was probably empathic, even if not telepathic. He also had a combination of Kara and J'onn's superpowers.

Not good.

Matt had ceased to struggle against the strange man as he stared in shock at his brother. He could hardly believe what he was hearing. Was his brother Bat…no, he couldn't be! Was he?

But the Terry that stood in front of him was different than the Terry he was used to seeing. He was colder, stronger, angrier…

"Batman," Chameleon said loudly. "Tell the League that Alexandra has decided to take your brother as a hostage until further notice."

"What does Luthor want?" Terry demanded. "Cadmus?"

"Not quite," the other man replied cryptically. "But she does want to destroy the Justice League." With that, he and Matt vanished again.

Terry swore loudly and punched the ground.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

David was starting to feel a strange tingle in his body. To his relief, he had found that even Jon-El was having trouble keeping up with him. The clone seemed now to be moving in almost slow motion as the speedster danced around him, gaining the upper hand.

The strange tingle seemed to be growing.

"_David!"_

David nearly skidded to a halt when he heard J'onn J'onzz call to him in his mind. What was wrong?

"_David, slow down!" _J'onn warned. His mental voice contained a note of urgency. _"You're going too fast!"_

_But I'm beating him! _David thought back. He was currently pummeling his fists into Jon-El's chest. The two combatants were somewhere east of St. Joseph, Missouri. The speedster could smell the stench of nearby cattle as he continued to unconsciously increase his flying fists.

"_DAVID! SLOW DOWN!" _J'onn demanded. David reluctantly slowed, feeling dizzy as he did so. His vibrating body slowly returned to normal speed, but not before a different voice entered his mind.

"_Who's there?" _A strange, male voice asked in surprise. David wasn't sure, but he thought he saw a red garbed figure flicker at his side.

The teenager didn't have time to contemplate this. Jon-El had staggered to his feet, disintegrated shirt and all.

"You're dead," Jon-El seethed. The clone was holding his battered chest painfully. The half-Kryptonian suddenly paused when he saw that the Martian Manhunter and Superman were now standing behind the Flash. Zaranna, Zatanna's daughter, was standing next to them, ready to use her magic.

J'onn immediately delved into the clone's mind to discover the current location of Alexandra Luthor. That being found, he sent it telepathically to the team that was standing by.

………………………………………………………………………………………………


	20. Finding Matt

_Disclaimer: I don't own DC Comics (unfortunately)._

_I'd like to take this moment to promote Inkaholic's story, Greeting the Green. It takes place in the Resurrecting the Red world. I also, apparently, need to find a way to work the whole 'Kara staying in the future with Brainiac thing' in the new JLU episode into the story, if possible._

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 20:_ Finding Matt

Matthew McGinnis was not happy. He struggled against the tight bonds as he glared up at the towering green man.

The effort was wasted. Chameleon wasn't paying attention to him.

Matt winced at the tender spot on his forehead. He could feel the skin starting to swell.

"This is foolish Alex," he heard the green man say. A red haired woman looked at him sharply.

"And how is that?" she asked quietly. Something in her voice made the listening boy shiver.

"Why take the boy?" Green Man asked. The Red Haired Witch (Matt's 'name' for her) smirked at Green Man before glancing coolly down at Matt.

"For the reason that League will be limited in their actions," Red Haired Witch explained. "Terry McGinnis can't very well go to the police. They would ask why his beloved little brother was in the hands of Alexandra Luthor and a metahuman. Only as Batman can he deal with this."

Matt squirmed as he tried not to stare. So it _was _true. His brother really was Batman! The young boy was still stunned by the revelation. There was still a part of him that wasn't believing it.

"Jon-El's in trouble," Green Man stated. Red Haired Witch tightened her lips as she looked down at a computer screen.

"Debray," she said after a moment. "Put the brat downstairs. He can keep Waller company."

Matt gave a start as a hand roughly lifted him up. He hadn't realized that there was another person in the room. A strange, brunette man leered down at him. His left eye was clearly cybernetic and Matt didn't fail to notice the wires sticking out of his body. Matt swallowed his fear and did what he thought Terry would do.

He glared up at the cyborg.

Then he kicked him.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Clark Kent stared at the clone of his son. Jon-El gave him a cheerful grin, eerily reminiscent of his dead child.

"_It's not him, Clark," _J'onn said telepathically. The Kryptonian tightened his fists in reply. No, it wasn't Jonathan. Jonathan Bruce Kent wouldn't do this.

Clark glanced over at the red garbed teenager. He and J'onn had come just in time. David had been dangerously close to falling into the speed force. The Kryptonian could not let that happen. Not as Clark Kent. Not as Superman.

He would do whatever he could to protect the boy.

Superman gave a grunt as the clone of his son slammed a fist into him. He staggered back a few steps as Jon-El flew at him. Another fist connected with the older man. Clark could still not bring himself to strike the face of his son.

The half-Kryptonian clone suddenly gave a yelp as some kind of energy laced through his skin. The energy bound itself around his limbs, blocking his movement.

"Good work Zaranna," J'onn said. Jon-El cursed silently to himself. He had forgotten about the magician. He heard rather than saw the raven haired woman walk up next to him. He could hear her heart beating rather loudly in her chest.

"I don't know how long I can hold him," Zaranna admitted. Zatanna's daughter had put all of her focus into restraining the clone. Her hands were enclosed tightly around her magic wand.

"Just hold him a little longer," Clark ordered. "Gear rigged up something really special just for him."

Jon-El hid a smirk. If they thought they could keep him a prisoner, they had another thing coming.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"_Calm down McGinnis."_

"How do expect me to _be _calm Wayne?"

"_Terry you can't help Matt like this. Calm down."_

With great reluctance, Terrence McGinnis calmed down. Bruce was right. He couldn't act as effectively with a hot head. Even so…the mental image of him smashing Chameleon's head in was an image he was looking forward to.

Terry looked around at the others with him. The League had sent a team after Luthor. Besides himself, the team consisted of Green Lantern, Green Arrow, Huntress, and Superwoman. Warhawk was standing by with another team.

"Don't worry Kid, we'll get him," Superwoman promised. Terry looked up into her sharp green eyes. They stared at each other for a moment before the teenager finally nodded.

"I'm going to beat the hell out of him," Terry swore, causing a smirk from Kara.

"You know Kid," Kara said. "I think I'm starting to like you."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Amanda Waller hid her surprise as Luthor's French lackey threw a young boy into a nearby cell. Debray didn't even bother to untie the boy or to uncover his mouth.

"Well well," Amanda said dryly. "It's another McGinnis." The boy looked over at her in surprise. Amanda scowled when she saw that one of the child's eyes had swollen shut. Matt seemed to be doing all that he could to bravely hide the pain.

He was not unlike Terry or Bruce in that. However, Amanda could tell that Matthew McGinnis was terrified.

_What the hell is Luthor doing now? _Amanda thought irately. She had spent her brief periods in confinement rather well. She now had fifty-seven different ways to disembowel Alexandra Luthor.

"Take off your shoes," Amanda advised out loud. Matt's arms were bound behind his back, but his feet weren't tied. The boy stared at her.

"Do it," Amanda glared. The boy quickly complied. Waller nodded a moment in approval before continuing.

"Good. Now see if you can at least can that damned tape off your mouth," she said. The boy struggled for about five minutes to remove the offending tape with his feet. His dark eyes focused in intense concentration, reminding Amanda strongly of a certain Bruce Wayne.

_At least with something to occupy him, the pain from his injuries should temporarily be forgotten. _

"Come on McGinnis," Amanda encouraged (taunted). "Terry would have it off already." She smirked as the boy sent her a very familiar glare. He then redoubled his efforts.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

"Are you sure about this?" David asked. He stared at the machine that was currently holding Jon-El. Green beams crisscrossed the weary looking clone.

"It'll hold," Richie promised. His friend, Virgil, crossed his arms. Gear had used a piece of Kryptonite that had been in one of the League's security vaults.

"But he's technically half-human, right?" David continued. "Will Kryptonite still have a big effect on him?"

"The effects are slightly less than Kent's," another voice answered. David turned around to see that Bruce had entered the room. The old man crossed the room to join him, followed closely by his vigilant dog.

"Does Terry need…" David started.

"We'll have to see," Bruce answered. "His team should be paying Luthor a visit now. Stewart has another team ready to help. You should take the moment to rest." Bruce cast an eye over the red haired teenager. He was still in the Flash costume, but had taken off his mask. He had also donned his favorite green jacket.

"I don't want to rest," David complained. "I want to help Terry." David wasn't sure, but he thought he saw the ghost of a smile quirk at Bruce's lips. The old man quickly hid it with a glare.

"I know you want to help," Bruce said.

"What about Terry's mom?"

"Commissioner Gordon will handle that. She'll tell Mrs. McGinnis that Terry and Matt were witnesses to an incident involving several Jokers."

"Did you make up that lie or did she?" David questioned dryly. Bruce smirked, but didn't answer. Instead he asked if David had called his uncle. David, of course, had. He had also called Max to make sure she was okay.

David bent down to pet Ace as Bruce studied the clone. Jon-El was still trying to struggle against his kryptonite bonds. J'onn had performed a full scan on the young man. Bruce was sure that Luthor now knew that Jon-El was in their custody.

For now anyway. Bruce had no illusions. Despite the guards that had been posted, Diana was one of them, there was still a strong possibility that the clone could get loose. This worried Bruce. He knew that Jon-El was especially keen on killing David.

After a moment, Bruce turned to go. He needed to keep an eye on Terry. He had only come up here to check on Jon-El personally, as well as David.

"Bruce," David said quietly. Bruce looked down at him. The teenager's gray eyes seemed troubled by something.

"What is it?" Bruce asked. The gray eyes flickered away. Bruce waited patiently.

"When I was fighting Jon-El, I heard a voice," David finally answered. "It wasn't J'onn. He seemed surprised."

"Did you see anything?" Bruce asked carefully.

"I saw a flash of red. I think it was a man," the teenager answered. Bruce looked at him for a long second.

"What did he say?" Bruce finally asked. His face was unreadable to the teenager.

"He said, 'Who's there?'" David answered. Bruce's face grew even more impassive. His sharp blue eyes narrowed briefly in thought.

"David," Bruce said on his way out the door. "I want you to talk to J'onn. I want him to scan you."

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Alexandra Luthor scowled at the women in front of her. Kara Kent and Elizabeth Szasz gave her a threateningly look.

"Give up Luthor," the Huntress warned. She pointed her crossbow at Alexandra.

"Go to hell," Alex answered. She threw herself to the floor and fired her hidden weapon at the duo. The Huntress rolled out of the way and fired her crossbow. Superwoman flew at her.

Chameleon intercepted the blonde haired woman.

With an angry yell, the two superpowers began a titanic battle. Luthor ignored the fighting duo as he trained her gun on the red head across the room. The Huntress was waiting patiently to pounce.

The Leaguers had smashed right through her defenses. They hadn't wasted any time on sneaking into her hidden Rocky Mountains bunker. Her father had converted an old Cold War bunker into a base of operations.

Alexandra scowled as the young Tibetan Green Lantern focused his ring on Chameleon. They had to get out of here. Fortunately, she still had a few of her father's old connections.

Alexandra Luthor still had a few cards to play.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Matt!" Terry called out. He raced down a hallway, followed closely by Ethan Queen.

"Batman!" Ethan warned. Batman and the Green Arrow jumped out of the way as a volley of plasmic energy shot at them.

"What do you know," Green Arrow said dryly. "A clear hallway with nothing to hide behind…how inconvenient." He notched an arrow and fired it down the hall. A second later, he had a second flying after it. There was a pulse of energy between the two arrows before a containment field formed between them.

"Good job Shorty," Terry said.

"I'm not short," Ethan answered automatically.

A rumbling sound caused the two superheroes to turn around. Several mechanical robots rolled into the hallway and pointed their weapons at them.

"Why does this remind me of Star Wars?" Terry muttered.

"Apparently Luthor doesn't care about copyright laws," Ethan quipped back. He let an arrow fly. A batarang followed it.

"I need to find my brother," Terry said. More battle droids rolled into the hallway.

"If you've got a plan, Genius, please let me know," Ethan said.

"Use the Force?" Batman asked.

"Very funny," Green Arrow answered.

"Queen, _exactly _how long will that containment field hold?" Terry asked. As if in answer, Ethan's force field on the other end of the hallway flickered and died.

"That long," Ethan answered.


	21. In the Line of Fire, Part I

_Disclaimer: I don't own DC Comics (unfortunately)._

_Sorry for the very much delayed update. I'm hoping to be able to update rather quickly now, as I would like to finish this story by the time fall semester starts._

_I've also recently opened an account at deviantart. I don't have anything up yet other than three quick manga sketches, but I hope to put some art up from my stories soon. I have a piece in mind from my story, The M&M Conspiracy, as well as from this story and This Ain't the Golden Years. My profile name is jayedynn._

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 21:_ In the Line of Fire, Part I

"More warning next time Queen!" Terry shouted. He and Ethan Queen jumped out of the way as a barrage of weaponry poured down the corridor at them. The two superheroes flattened themselves against opposite walls as they tried to avoid being hit.

"Cover me!" Green Arrow yelled, firing off a volley of arrows as he rolled out into the corridor. Batman flung several batarangs at the robots. Several were shot down, but two managed to land among the small army and detonate.

Meanwhile, Ethan raced towards the robots, dodging only to avoid being hit. As fast as he was, he couldn't avoid being grazed across his chest, tearing the cloth and leaving a deep burn.

"GA!" Terry shouted. It looked like the archer was trying to commit suicide. "What are you…?" Ethan was nearly face first with the robots now, when Terry saw him open his mouth.

Batman blinked as a sonic boom pushed back most of the robots and severally damaged all of the others, save two. Terry quickly flung two batarangs at the survivors as Ethan finished off the others.

Ethan wiped his hands and turned around cheerfully to see Terry glaring at him.

"You!" Terry accused, jabbing his finger at the older man. "You've never said anything about having a sonic scream!"

"It's only short range," Ethan answered sheepishly, holding up his hands in defense. "It's not anywhere near as strong as my mom or my sister's."

"That was suicide," Terry continued.

"It runs in the family," Ethan replied. Green Arrow winced at the burn on his chest. He had been lucky. Had his body been turned slightly, that shot would have killed him.

"You okay?" Batman asked in concern. Green Arrow flashed him a grin before taking off down the corridor.

"Just try to keep up with me!" Green Arrow called back. Terry followed after him.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

David tried not to fidget as J'onn peered into his mind. He only hoped that the Martian wouldn't discover that he and Terry had cheated on their last exam.

"You should have studied more," J'onn replied.

_Damn._

"We didn't have time," David muttered. However, he knew that excuse wouldn't fly with J'onn J'onzz.

The teenager sat quietly for several more minutes before the Martian finally released him. The Flash immediately raced up to the control room to check on Terry's progress. J'onn sat quietly for a moment in quiet reflection before he reached out with his mind to find Bruce Wayne, who was currently in the control room with Clark Kent.

"_Bruce, Clark," _J'onn thought. He felt both men pause in their conversation as they gave him their full attention.

"_What is it?"_ he felt Clark think back.

"_The voice and the red figure that David glimpsed in the speed force, it was Wally."_

J'onn felt the two other men freeze. He could feel Bruce's mind turning, trying to fit together the invisible puzzle.

"_You're certain?"_ Bruce asked carefully.

"_Yes…and it was not just an image David saw in the speed force. I can feel a faint imprint of Wally's mind in David's, as if the two had connected briefly telepathically," _J'onn continued. _"Which is entirely possible, given that he was close to the speed force."_

"_What should we do?"_ Clark asked.

"_Nothing yet Kent,"_ Bruce answered.

"_But Wally…!"_

"_Bruce is correct, Clark. We must first deal with the situation at hand."_ Clark grew silent at this.

"_Kent,"_ Bruce finally thought. _"We're not even sure if Wally is alive in there. All we know is that David made contact with him."_

"_Another consideration must be taken,"_ J'onn continued. _"If Wally is truly alive in the speed force, it is uncertain as to how will we get him out."_

"_We'll get him out,"_ Clark stated firmly.

"_At David's expense?"_ Bruce thought quietly. J'onn felt the Kryptonian freeze at that. The Martian Manhunter knew that what his friend said was true. David was the only one capable of reaching the speed force.

But that also meant possibly losing the teenager in the attempt.

"We'll find a way," Clark continued. "We have to. We don't have a choice."

To that, the other two men had no answer.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Kara Kent gave a wild grin as she punched Chameleon throw a wall. She didn't care if he was technically her "son", as he had her genes mixed up in his genetic structure.

Brainiac 5 would tell her to calm down, of course. Kara had never thought she'd be able to go back to the past, but events had turned out differently. When one of the Linear Men had turned rogue and began supplying the Key with advanced weaponry, she had traveled back in time.

There she had teamed up with Wally and J'onn, as well as some others, to fight the Key. She had witnessed Wally's disappearance in the speed force. After that, she and J'onn had defeated the ex-Linear Man.

She had no memories after that. The next thing she remembered was waking up to Terry's cowled face.

To say that Kara Kent was pissed would be an understatement.

She gave a grunt as Chameleon materialized behind her and struck her across the back. Kara plummeted down through a few floors before flying back up to meet the green metahuman.

Meanwhile, Huntress was still facing off against Alexander Luthor. The red haired heroine had managed to wound the other woman with her crossbow, but she hadn't been able to get close enough to her yet to inflict any real damage.

"Give it up Luthor!" she shouted. The Huntress ducked as Luthor fired off several shots at her. Elizabeth Szasz was forced to cover her face when the ground suddenly exploded in front of her. She could just barely make out Luthor sprinting towards the exit, but a gleaming sword kept her from following.

Her eyes followed up the sword to see a blue skinned female figure wielding it, her face wrapped in white cloth.

"Well well, what a surprise," a hidden male voice said. Elizabeth watched as a man dressed in black materialized out of the shadows. _The Shade_.

Behind him and the silent woman, Elizabeth could just make out the figure of Bizarro, who was currently in the process of throwing a wall at Superwoman.

"Watchtower," the Huntress said quickly into her radiolink. "Luthor just invited some friends over from the Injustice League."

With that, the Huntress was forced to defend herself as the Shade and Curare' attacked her. _(For notes on Curare', see author's note at bottom of the page.)_

………………………………………………………………………………………..

"What was that?" Matt asked. Amanda Waller narrowed her eyes thoughtfully as the sounds of a large battle ripped through the compound. She eyed the boy, who had finally managed to remove his bindings.

"Sit tight Kid," Amanda said. "We'll be out of here soon."

"What if this place collapses first?" Matt questioned. Amanda gave a grim smirk. _Smart Kid. _That indeed was a definite possibility.

"I guess we'll find out," Waller said calmly, making no attempt to baby the boy. Matt gulped and tried valiantly to hide his fear.

"You look a lot like your father and brother," Amanda told him.

"No I don't, Dad had brown hair," Matt said matter of factly, giving her a strange look.

Amanda chose not to respond to that.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Jon-El tested his bonds as he glared out at his captors. Wonder Woman smirked at him from across the room, causing the half-Kryptonian clone to scowl.

His "prison" was being powered by Kryptonite, but Jon-El was determined to escape. He knew Alexandra had connections with the Injustice League, he himself was an unofficial member. Jon-El knew that it was highly probable that Luthor would contact them if she hadn't already.

Jon-El hid a smirk. The first thing we would do when he was free would be to wipe the smug look off of Wonder Woman's face.

Then he would hunt down the Flash.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

_**Author's note**:_

_Not much of David in this chapter, I'm afraid, but there'll be much more of him next chapter._

_For those of you who don't know or remember, Curare' was in an episode of Batman Beyond entitled "A Touch of Curare'". She was a member of the Society of Assassins who tried to kill Barbara Gordon's husband. In the end of the episode, it showed her trying to escape being killed by the Society of Assassins for failing in her mission._

_I haven't stated much on her yet, but I liked her character. The episode implies in the end that she was being hunted, but doesn't say if she was killed. I like the idea of her joining up with the Injustice League and/or finding employment with Alexandra Luthor._

_As for Kara, she was originally intended to have been in her normal time the whole time. But after the JLU episode where she decided to stay in the future, I had to decide on whether to make this story fit with the canon storyline or to make it AU. I decided to try to make it fit by having Kara come back to the past during the fight that Wally disappeared. After this story is finished, I'll probably have her return to the future._

_I'm also considering a sequel for this story after it's finished, but I'm not sure yet. I'm hoping to update again in a few days._


	22. In the Line of Fire, Part II

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 22:_ In the Line of Fire, Part II

"_Watchtower, Luthor just invited some friends over from the Injustice League."_

David watched as Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne wasted no time in getting the League into gear. A minute after the Huntress's call for help, Superman had used the emergency transporters to beam down to the planet with Warhawk, Green Lantern, Aquagirl, Donna Troy, and Black Canary.

The young Flash quickly turned to Bruce and J'onn, who were now at the control station. The billionaire was currently typing away madly at the console, despite the arthritis in his old hands.

"What should I…" David started. A large explosion interrupted him.

"We have three breaches in the Watchtower," Bruce said calmly. "Levels two and three, sections blue and gold."

"I'm on it," David said quickly, and sped off before either man could stop him. J'onn quickly relayed the information telepathically to the rest of the League.

"This is bad," J'onn told Bruce.

"Yes," the billionaire answered. "I suspected that Luthor had ties to the Injustice League like her father, but I didn't realize that she had enough influence to call out this many of them."

"I sense five people," J'onn said. "Three of them I recognize, the other two I don't."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Diana came on guard the moment that the Watchtower shuddered and the alarms began ringing. Though, to be truthful, she had been on guard the whole time she'd been watching Jon-El.

"Zaranna, Tornado, Booster, stay on guard," Diana snapped hurriedly. She went on the defensive the moment the wall exploded inward. The Amazon focused in on the approaching two figures as one of them raised his hands.

Diana dodged out of the way as a blast of green radiation melted through part of the floor.

"Nimble minx, aren't we?" Blight asked dryly. The man formerly known as Derek Powers shot another blast at Wonder Woman, trying to distract her from his colleague.

Jon-El smirked as Zaranna, Red Tornado, and Booster Gold formed a ring in front of him, trying to stall a blonde haired woman wearing an identical smirk.

"I've come to liberate you, Little Cousin," Galatea said. Zaranna, Zatanna's daughter, was already weaving a spell to cast as Steven Carter, the second Booster Gold, created a force field in front of the imprisoned Jon-El. Red Tornado merely waited impassively as he waited for the blonde clone to make her move.

"Oh please," Galatea snorted. "Your pathetic little tricks won't work on me." She zipped out of the way as Zatarra attempted to use her magic.

"Blight!" the clone shouted. "Take care of them. I'll get Wonder Woman!" Diana punched through the floor, causing Blight to fall down into the next level.

"You were saying?" Wonder Woman asked. Galatea smirked.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

David stared curiously at the gigantic red haired woman in front of him. She had on a pink dress.

"I never did like pink much," the Flash said.

"It's my favorite color," Giganta snapped. David sped out of the way as her fist crashed down at him. As he sped around the huge woman, he could see Static and Dr. Fate teaming up against some lady who called herself Star Sapphire.

"You wouldn't hit a girl, would you Little Man?" Giganta taunted.

"Actually," the Flash said, "I would!" He zoomed up the nearby wall and twirled himself into a cyclone, catching the giant woman in the crossfire. David used the increasing speed to fling Giganta towards Star Sapphire.

"Static! Fate! Move it!" David yelled. The two men looked up just in time to dodge out of the way. Unfortunately, Sapphire did as well. Virgil used the moment to zap Giganta with several high volts of electricity, causing her to revert back to her smaller form.

The three men now turned their attention to Sapphire.

"Hey," Static said suddenly. "There're five of them, right?"

"Yeah, so?" David asked.

"There's two in the detention center with Jon-El and there's two here. Where's the fifth?"

"I'll find her," Dr. Fate said calmly. "I'm sure you two can handle this." With that, the wizard teleported away.

"Gee, thanks!" David yelled sarcastically, his temper flaring up.

"We can handle it Kid," Virgil said.

"I don't care, he left us!" David snapped, growing more infuriated.

"Hey! Hey!" Virgil protested. "If you're going to lose your temper, take it out on her!" He pointed at Star Sapphire.

David zoomed at her.

"Geez," Virgil muttered. "Sometimes he's so much like Linda that it's scary."

……………………………………………………………………………………….

Bruce watched as a black liquid surged under the closed doors and into the room. It looked familiar….

"It's Inque," Bruce warned. The black liquid immediately reformed into the image of a young woman. Bruce made no attempt to hide his face. Since Luthor had discovered the identities of most of the League, she had probably informed her associates in the Injustice League.

Which meant that J'onn was going to be busy later on when he was wiping their memories.

"She doesn't like the water," Bruce said. Too bad they had sent Aquagirl down to the planet. She would be the perfect foil for Inque.

"I'll handle her," a voice suddenly said. Bruce and J'onn watched as Dr. Fate materialized into the room. J'onn nodded at him before turning back to the console. He had a League to supervise.

………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Which way?" Ethan asked. He and Terry, miraculously, hadn't run into anyone from the Injustice League yet. Both had been listening to the League Emergency Communications System (E-Com), and neither expected their good fortune to last long.

"J'onn said that according to Jon-El, they're down in the third level," Terry answered.

"Which one are we one?" Ethan asked.

"The second."

Terry scanned around him, searching for a weak point in the compound's structure. He spotted one near them.

"Use your sonic scream here," Terry pointed. "If we can bust through this spot, we'll have a short cut down to the next level." Ethan opened his mouth and blasted at the spot that Batman had indicated. He managed to damage it to the point that the floor compacted inwards, but not enough to punch through the thick titanium floor.

"Close enough," Terry said. He flung a small gift from Bruce at the severely weakened spot. The chemical explosion from Bruce's toy sufficiently served to puncture through the remaining metal.

"After you," Terry indicated. Ethan peered down through the floor at the long drop.

"Did I mention that I hate heights?" Green Arrow asked.

"If you don't move Ethan, I'm shoving you through!" Terry threatened. Ethan Queen took a deep breath and leapt down. He hadn't been kidding. He really did hate heights.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Kara gave a small sigh of relief as Clark's team joined in on the fight. Her cousin immediately focused on Bizarro as she and Donna Troy teamed up against Chameleon. Aquagirl and Warhawk both attacked the Shade as the Huntress was left to deal with Curare alone. Black Canary and Green Lantern had gone off to find Batman and Green Arrow.

The Huntress kind of preferred it that way. She was too proud to ask for help against the blue skinned woman.

Besides, Elizabeth Szasz never backed down from a challenge.

The Huntress somersaulted out of the way as Curare leapt nimbly at her. Elizabeth was thankful yet again to her mother for forcing her and her sister to take gymnastics when they were growing up.

Elizabeth was an Olympic level gymnast.

She rolled out of the way as her blue opponent sliced down at her. The Huntress rolled onto her back and kicked up, catching Curare in the jaw. Elizabeth realized that her crossbow wasn't going to do her any good.

The strange woman was a close range combatant. She was also too fast at long distances for the crossbow to be effective.

She narrowly avoided the sharp blade. However, Curare twisted in mid strike to catch Elizabeth in the stomach with a powerful kick from her foot.

_Damn…she's good…_

Even though the odds seemed to be against her, the Huntress smirked.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

Clark glanced over at Kara as he punched Bizarro through a wall. Kara was holding her own against Chameleon, but his ability to become intangible was making it difficult for anyone to fight him.

_We really need J'onn to fight him._

Kara was too proud to admit that though. He knew that she had come to the same conclusion. For all her powers and fighting experience, it didn't matter if your opponent could faze through solid matter.

To Clark's surprise though, Kara decided to call J'onn for help, pride be damned. She had matured much more than he realized during her time in the future.

"Superman," Kara called out. "J'onn and I are switching places. Can you handle it for a few seconds?" She seemed almost eager to go.

Of course. The answer hit Clark immediately.

She wanted to fight Galatea.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Men," Star Sapphire snarled. "You think you're so superior…"

"Shut up Lady!" the Flash snapped. He was getting rather peeved with the dark haired supervillian. She kept droning on and on about the flaws of men. It only served to heighten David's already foul mood.

Star Sapphire sent several blasts at David and Virgil. One managed to knock Static back, but the Flash dodged the others.

"Look You Ugly Witch!" David snapped. "The strongest people I know are women! Wonder Woman, Superwoman…not to mention mine and Batman's girlfriends could kick our butts any day of the week!"

"Calm down Kid!" Static called out. "Losing your temper's one thing….but don't let it go to your head! You need to think!"

David knew that Virgil was right, but he was still pissed. How dare this strange woman downgrade men? Not to mention the fact that she had broken into the Watchtower with the intent of killing he and his fellow Leaguers.

The Flash couldn't help it if he was in a bad mood.

Static watched as a red blur caused Star Sapphire to fly back against the wall. Suddenly, however, he saw David come to a screeching halt and grasp his head in pain.

"Flash!" Virgil shouted. "What's wrong?" He watched as Sapphire used the opportunity to blast the distracted David through a wall. Static immediately swung around to shoot electricity at her.

What the hell had happened to David?

………………………………………………………….

David groaned as he struggled to sit up. His body hurt like hell, especially his head.

_Who's that? Who's there?_

It was that voice again. The one he had heard when he was fighting Jon-El.

"Who are you?" David asked out loud.

But the voice didn't answer.

………………………………………………………………………………………

"Terry!" Matt shouted, flinging himself towards his brother. Amanda allowed herself a small smirk of satisfaction when she saw that it was Batman and Green Arrow who had come in to rescue them.

Terry and Ethan immediately opened their cells. Batman grabbed a hold of his younger brother, and was shocked when Matt wrapped his arms around him in a hug.

"Aww…." Ethan said. Terry and Matt both gave him identical glares. Green Arrow held up his hands as Amanda's smirk grew wider. They were definitely Bruce's sons.

Even if they didn't know that.

"Let's get going," Terry said quickly. Ethan offered his hand to Amanda, which she took.

"Why are superheroes always so handsome," she murmured.

"What was that?" Green Arrow questioned.

"It was nothing Shorty," she answered. Ethan fumed a bit at her back.

"I'm not short," he protested.

"Yeah you are Queen," Terry said. "Now get moving!" Green Arrow didn't argue as he helped Amanda out of the room.

"I don't suppose we can expect an emergency transport to the Watchtower anytime soon," Ethan commented.

"Why is that?" Amanda asked.

"Luthor called in the Injustice League," Terry answered. "They've sent people to attack here and back at the station."

"What're you going to do?" Matt asked warily. Batman and Green Arrow looked at each other before sharing a glance with Amanda.

"I suppose we'd better get out of the compound first," Ethan said. "We'll take it from there."

"You make it sound so easy," Amanda said dryly.

"I wish," Green Arrow answered grimly.

……………………………………………………………………………………………


	23. In the Line of Fire, Part III

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 23:_ In the Line of Fire, Part III

Booster Gold watched as Wonder Woman punched Galatea through a bulkhead. The clone halted herself in midair and flew back at the Amazon. Both women exchanged blow for blow, pitting titanic strength against each other…the kind that would level a city in an instant.

"You know I'll be out of here soon," Jon-El taunted. He smirked at his three guards. Zaranna glared at him while Red Tornado continued to watch impassively. Booster Gold continued to concentrate on keeping up the forcefield.

Dr. Steven Carter, unlike his father, the former Booster Gold, had always been a quiet and thoughtful man. He was very different from his show-boating father, who had always been obsessed with fame. This often brought embarrassment to the younger Carter, who was already at odds with his father. When he wasn't being Booster Gold, he ran a small medical clinic down in San Antonio.

"The floor!" Zaranna suddenly warned. Booster Gold looked down in surprise as the floor began to melt under their feet. Green radiation poured up from the lower level as Blight melted away the half-Kryptonian's prison.

"Jon-El…!" Steven shouted. The machine gave a spark as the kryptonite barrier died. The clone gave a smirk as Blight fired another blast of radiation from below to cover him.

Booster and Zaranna wasted no time in throwing up a barrier, but Jon-El was faster. The half-Kryptonian knocked out the magician before she could cast any spells. Steven immediately rushed to his friend's aide and checked her pulse. She was still alive, but she was badly injured.

Meanwhile, Red Tornado was faced with the task of trying to halt Jon-El and Blight, who had now paired up against him. The android cast a look down at Booster Gold and saw that Zaranna was in grave condition. The two men shared a look before Tornado told him to go.

Booster Gold scooped up the unconscious Zaranna and raced down to the Medlab. He was a Justice Leaguer, but he considered himself a doctor first.

He had a feeling that he would be better off applying his medical skills down in the infirmary.

They might need it.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Diana cursed when she saw that Jon-El had been freed. However, she had no time to contemplate this as Galatea threw a punch at her, which she managed to block.

The Amazon gripped the other woman's wrist and twirled her around before throwing her at Jon-El. The other clone twisted out of the way of Tornado's attack and caught his "cousin."

"Give it up," Jon-El warned. He and Galatea smirked at the heroes.

"Oh, I don't think so," a new voice said. Diana grinned as Kara Kent flew at the surprised Galatea.

"Don't interfere Diana!" Kara called as she punched her clone. "This is my fight!" Diana shrugged as she and Tornado focused on Jon-El and Blight. Both men only smirked at them.

"Bring it on, Old Lady," Jon-El taunted. Diana raised an eyebrow.

This kid needed to learn some manners.

"Tornado," she said calmly. "Take Blight. The kid's mine."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Clark Kent and Donna Troy were busy with Bizarro and Chameleon when J'onn finally showed up to take Kara's place. The Martian gave them a nod as he faced off with the now dismayed Chameleon.

Donna Troy kicked Bizarro towards Clark, who clasped his fists together and hammered them down against the deformed clone. Bizarro smashed down through several levels of the shaking compound.

Seconds later, an infuriated Bizarro was flying back at them.

"Me Bizarro smash!"

"This is getting repetitive," Donna muttered. She twisted around the ugly clone and struck the back of his neck with her elbow. Then she hooked a leg around his left ankle and swung him around before driving her other foot into his stomach.

Clark merely scratched his head as Bizarro plummeted to the ground. The clone twitched, but didn't move.

"Between you and Diana, I'm hardly needed," Clark smiled.

"Stop being humble," Donna said. "He'll probably be awake in a few minutes and mad as a hornet."

The two superpowers looked down at where Warhawk and Aquagirl were currently battling the Shade.

The two younger Leaguers appeared to be having some trouble against the Master of Shadows. Aquagirl had briefly managed to freeze him in ice, but the Shade merely melted into a shadow and appeared across the room.

Warhawk, meanwhile, seemed to be having better luck since his armor was made from Nth metal. The magical properties of the metal were having more of an effect on the pale man.

Rex punched him.

The Shade flew back and melted once more in the shadows before any real damage was done. Rex Stewart took to the air as he waited for the villain to reemerge. Merina covered the floor with several feet of water as she too waited.

They didn't have to wait long.

Shadowy hands reached out from the walls and attempted to grab both of the Leaguers. Rex swooped around them as Merina danced along on the water, avoiding the shadows.

Suddenly, the Shade gave a scream as all of the shadows in the room abruptly lit up in a flash of energy. He fell out of the wall and weakly onto the ground, floating in the water. Aquagirl immediately seized the chance and froze him in a crystal of ice.

Rex whirled around to see who their secret helper was.

"Mom!" he yelled.

Shayera Hol Stewart flew down to her son, cradling her mace as her lips widened into a smile. Her red hair contained only the tiniest amount of gray and, except for one small, faint wrinkle, her face seemed untouched by the last several decades.

Shayera saw movement out of the corner of her eye and swooped in before any of the others could react. The awakened Bizarro, intent on fighting Superman and Donna Troy again, failed to see the mace wielding Thanagarian.

He collapsed again, out cold.

Rex looked around before pressing the radiolink in his ear.

"Batman, Green Arrow," he said. "Report your situation."

"_We've got them,"_ Ethan answered back. _"We could use a little help with our extraction though and…oh wait. There's my sister."_

"Black Canary and Green Lantern should be enough," Rex answered back. "Get up here when you can. This place looks like it will collapse soon."

With that, Warhawk looked around him suddenly.

"Where's J'onn and Chameleon?" he questioned. Clark shrugged his shoulders, and frowned as he did so. The last time he had seen the two men fighting, they had vanished through the wall.

"Speaking of them, where's Huntress?" Donna asked.

………………………………………………………………………………………

Chameleon grimaced as J'onn pressed in on his attack. Both men were fairly evenly matched, although the green metahuman's strength was slightly superior. However, it was J'onn's mental abilities that were proving to be his undoing.

The metahuman was an empath only. While this offered some defense against the Martian, it wasn't absolute.

The two men, somewhere outside the compound, floated in the freezing Rocky Mountain air. Sweat dripped down Chameleon's face as he attempted to block J'onn's telepathic attacks.

That failing, he grasped his head in pain as the Martian drove through his defenses. He lost all sense of self as his mind was thoroughly invaded and destroyed.

J'onn watched in growing pity as the metahuman looked around him in terror. His memories completely wiped, Chameleon had no idea where or who he was.

He now also had the mental capacity of a child.

J'onn silently grasped the other man's cape and gently dragged him back to the compound. He hadn't intended to inflict as much mental damage as he did, but the Martian hadn't felt there was much choice.

Chameleon was just too dangerous.

……………………………………………………………………………………….

Matt peered curiously through the green shield. They had run unexpectantly into Green Lantern and Black Canary. Now the former had both he and Amanda Waller in a green ball of energy that he was using to transport them, leaving Terry and Green Arrow with more freedom to act.

The Green Lantern intrigued the young McGinnis, as he was apparently not much older than himself.

"Hey, how old…" Matt started to ask him.

"Not now Matt," Terry ordered. He and Ethan had taken the lead as Green Lantern floated behind them. Black Canary, or Emily Queen, had taken up the rear.

Matt glared at his brother as his bottom lip jutted out slightly in a pout. Amanda noticed this and felt a hint of a real smile. The boy was really growing on her.

Matt and Amanda looked on as the others suddenly came to a stop.

"What is it?" Amanda asked.

"Huntress," Terry answered. "The Boyscout just sent us a message. He said that this place is about to collapse and that he spotted Huntress near us with his X-Ray vision."

The group veered off to the left and was soon greeted with the sight of two fighting women. A panting Huntress was holding her left arm, which sported a deep gash from her shoulder down to her elbow.

"Huntress!" Ethan yelled. The red haired beauty cast him a look before ducking a blow from an equally exhausted Curare.

"Careful GA," Terry said. "Her name's Curare, she was a member of the Society of Assassins." As he said this, Curare's eyes flashed in recognition as she saw Batman.

"So she's from your Rogue's Gallery, huh?" Ethan asked dryly.

"Oh yeah," Terry answered.

"Come on Huntress, let's go!" Black Canary shouted. Huntress glared obstinately at her before throwing a kick at her opponent.

"Hey Kairo, do the honors please," Ethan said.

A green light broke off from the ball of energy surrounding Matt and Amanda and grabbed the red haired woman, pulling her back in a rubber band effect. Elizabeth Szasz glared hotly as she found herself sharing a ball of energy with Waller and Matt.

"I'm not done yet!" Elizabeth protested. Black Canary smirked at her.

"Yeah, you are," Emily Queen said. "You can fight her again later, but first we've got to get out of here."

"We'd better grab Curare too," Ethan pointed out. "She might know our identities since she's associated with Luthor."

"Too late," Terry said.

The others paused and looked around. In the seconds they had been distracted, the former assassin had already slipped silently away.

………………………………………………………………………………………..

Barbara Gordon drummed her fingers against her arm as she watched the dark skinned teenager. Dick had volunteered Max Gibson to her to assist her. Barbara was glad she had come.

Barbara had fed Mary McGinnis a little white lie on how Terry and Matt had witnessed a crime and were now giving a report to the police. Being the protective mother that she was, Mrs. McGinnis kept calling, demanding to talk to her sons.

"Are you ready?" Barbara finally asked. Max gave her a thumbs up sign as she tapped a few commands into a keyboard with her other hand. Barbara picked up the phone and took Mary McGinnis off hold.

"Yes, Mrs. McGinnis…I have Terry right here," Barbara lied. She held the phone out to Max, who had already hacked a line into the phone call.

"Hey Mom," Max said. She was using a computer program to disguise her voice as Terry. Since the two were best friends, she knew exactly how he would answer.

"_Terry, are you two okay?"_ Mary McGinnis asked worriedly.

"I'm _fine_ Mom," 'Terry' said. "We won't be here much longer."

"_But school…"_ Mary started.

"Commissioner Gordon has sent emails to our teachers, excusing us for our absence," 'Terry' answered. "Just in case it's a long night."

"…_Alright,"_ Mary McGinnis finally said. _"Where's your brother? I want to talk to him."_

"He's in the bathroom," Max answered. "He's fine, Mom. Don't worry. I'll call you back a little later."

"_Alright, bye Terry,"_ Mary said.

Max clicked off the phone and sat back with a look of satisfaction. Barbara shook her head. She pitied the poor mother. Mary McGinnis didn't deserve this, especially the lies. The Commissioner decided that she and Terry might need to have a talk on the importance of being open with your parents…

Then again, how long had she waited before telling her father that she was Batgirl? Barbara realized suddenly that she had no room to talk.

"That was pretty good, Kid," Barbara told Max. The girl grinned at her. The Commissioner gave her a considering look.

"You ever consider a career in law enforcement?" Barbara asked suddenly. Max gave her a surprised look.

"Uh…no," Max answered truthfully. Barbara Gordon gave a wry smile.

"Want to work for me?"

…………………………………………………………………………………

Static and Flash gave a sigh of relief when Star Sapphire finally collapsed on the floor and didn't get back up. David, after his momentary dizziness, had joined the fight again.

"I suppose we'd better keep an eye on these two," Virgil said. "If they wake back up again…" He paused when he saw David stumble a step.

"You okay?" he asked in concern. Flash was holding his head again.

"It's that voice again," David mumbled. Virgil felt his concern deepen.

"Voice?" the older man asked suspiciously. He didn't like the sound of that. In Virgil's experience, hearing invisible voices was never a good sign.

"Yeah," David said. "Ever since my fight with Jon-El, I've been hearing this voice. Bruce and J'onn seem to think it has something to do with the fact that I almost fell into the speed force."

Virgil stopped cold.

"You almost _what_?" Virgil almost yelled. No one had told him about that. They had lost Wally to the speed force; they didn't need to lose David.

"Nnn," David grunted. He fell to his knees and clutched his head.

"Flash!" Virgil yelled. He gripped the young man's shoulders and shook him, but no reply. "David!"

Suddenly, David froze as he appeared to be listening to an invisible voice.

"David? Kid?" Virgil asked cautiously. David suddenly spun around to stare at the older man; he seemed to have trouble breathing.

"It's Him!" David nearly yelled. "I know it is!"

"Wait, wait!" Virgil protested, holding up his hands. "Calm down. It's _Who_?"

"My grandpa," David nearly whispered. "I asked him his name and he said it's Wally West."

Virgil stared.

……………………………………………………

_Author's note:_

_I concentrated mainly on the fights going down on Earth. Next chapter I'll focus more on Galatea vs. Kara, Diana vs. Jon-El, as well as the Dr. Fate vs. Inque, Red Tornado vs. Blight things. There'll also be more David in the next chapter as well._


	24. Voices

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 24:_ _Voices_

Virgil stared at David.

"Wally?" he asked cautiously. Static was afraid to get his hopes up.

"We have to help him!" David insisted. "We have to get him out of there!"

"How're we supposed to do that?" Virgil asked. David fidgeted before answering reluctantly.

"I'd have to go into the speed force."

"Whoa, whoa! No way!" Virgil protested strongly. "How the hell do you expect to come back out?" The older man held himself back from shaking the stubborn teenager.

"We have to get him out of there!" David insisted. "If you…"

"No!" Virgil nearly shouted. He waved his hands furiously at the younger superhero. "I want to help Wally too, dammit! But all you're going to do is get stuck in there too! Who the hell's going to help you get out when everyone else on the station is busy with Luthor and the Injustice League?!"

David stood silently as he processed what the irate older man was trying to tell him. The teenager knew he was telling the truth, but…

"_**Hey, you still there?"**_

David jerked his head at the unseen voice again. It had been faint before, but it seemed to get stronger every time it spoke.

"What?" Virgil asked.

"It's my Grandpa again," David answered.

"**_Grandpa?"_** the puzzled voice asked. _"**Just who are you anyway?"**_

"Uh…" David started.

"Wally!" Virgil shouted. "Tell your grandkid that it's a crazy idea! He'll…wait…can he even hear me?" he asked. David shrugged his shoulders.

"Uh…Mr. Hawkins wants to know if you can hear him," David said out loud.

"**_Hawkins? I heard someone else's voice faintly, but I couldn't understand it. Who is Hawkins…wait…Virgil Hawkins?"_**

Virgil watched curiously as David seemed to talk to himself. Was he _really_ talking to Wally? Or was the kid just crazy?

"**_Kid,"_** Wally West asked in David's mind, **_"Just who are you anyway? You called me your grandpa."_**

"Er…My name's David. David Kae. I'm Iris's son."

There was a very long pause. It seemed like an eternity to David before his grandfather's voice spoke again.

"_**Iris? Where is she? Are Barry and Linda around?"**_

David froze as he considered how to answer that. Fortunately for him, the radiolink in his ear beeped at that moment.

"_Flash, Static…status report,"_ Bruce Wayne asked.

"Everything seems to be okay from our end," Virgil answered. "Giganta and Star Sapphire are currently out of commission."

"_Good,"_ Bruce answered. "_Take them down to the detention center. Two of the other intruders have been neutralized by Dr. Fate and Red Tornado."_

"What about the others?" David asked.

"_Wonder Woman is currently fighting Jon-El and Superwoman is fighting Galatea."_

"Where?" David asked. There was a brief pause on Bruce's end.

"_Diana's down in section G, level 12. Kara's somewhere in section B, but our sensors are offline in that area. It's difficult to tell. David, don't do anything rash."_

"Too late Bruce," Virgil answered. "He ran off as soon as you said the section numbers. He's probably there by now." He heard Bruce mutter a curse on his end.

"I guess I'm taking these clowns to the brig," Virgil muttered, glaring at the unconscious bodies of the two Injustice League members. _Wait, I'd better tell Bruce about Wally…_ Virgil quickly reopened his radiolink.

"Bruce?"

…………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Diana gave a grunt as Jon-El's knee rammed into her throat. She managed to bring one of her bracelets up in time to block the laser beams that shot from his eyes.

The Princess of Themiscyra gave a wry smile as her right heel caught the clone hard in the jaw. It was something she had noticed not long into the fight.

The clone had Jonathan Kent's powers, but none of his fighting experience. He certainly had none of _her_ extensive fighting experience.

The only reason that the fight hadn't reached a definite conclusion yet was that Diana didn't want to decimate the Watchtower and risk endangering the lives of the other Leaguers. Had she not had to worry about that, she wouldn't have had to be so careful with her actions.

Still, enough was enough.

Diana slammed Jon-El through a wall.

………………………………………………………………………………………..

Kara Kent was not happy to find herself equally matched by Galatea. Kara had grown in strength and skill, but so had her clone.

It was grating, to say the least.

"I can't believe you're still around," Galatea mocked. "Aren't you supposed to be in the future or something?

"I'm on a long vacation," Kara retorted, punching the other blonde in the stomach. Galatea immediately retaliated by swooping behind Kara and kicked her down through two floors of the Watchtower.

Galatea floated down through the gaping holes and paused above the glaring Kara Kent.

"You know," Galatea said innocently. "I heard that it's because your worthless boyfriend dumped you."

Galatea suddenly found herself being pummeled by an enraged Kara Kent.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

Terry McGinnis frowned down at his brother's swollen eye. Matt tried to brush his brother off in an attempt to act tough, claiming that he wasn't a baby.

Amanda Waller, however, was having none of that.

"Mr. McGinnis," Amanda warned sternly. "Stand _still_ and let your brother look at your face."

Matthew McGinnis meekly obeyed the terrifying old woman. Amanda gave a short nod of approval as Terry began to investigate the injury.

"Any word from the Watchtower?" Amanda asked. Ethan Queen shook his head at her.

"Mr. Wayne says that the transporters are still offline. They have their hands full with trying to stop Galatea and Jon-El. The other intruders have already been captured."

"I'm going back up there," Clark said firmly. "Green Lantern, take Donna, Shayera and Black Canary with you. Batman, I want you take your brother home and Amanda…"

"I'll go with McGinnis," Amanda said firmly. "You should probably send the rest out to track down Luthor."

Clark only nodded in agreement.

"Huntress, Green Arrow, Warhawk, J'onn...get moving," he ordered. "We'll take Chameleon with us."

……………………………………………………………………………

David zoomed around the corner and barely avoided being hit by a flying Galatea. He skidded to a halt as the blonde woman crashed through a wall. Kara flew after her, only to freeze in mid-air.

The Flash ran closer to see what had caused Superwoman to stop fighting.

Galatea had a hostage, a young male technician.

"Let him go," Kara warned. A wide smirk grew across her clone's lips. Galatea laughed as she gripped the frightened young man even tighter.

"Nah…" she laughed. "Since when did I ever play fair?"

David watched them closely; he wasn't sure what to do. He had to help them…but they couldn't risk Galatea killing the hostage.

"**She'd kill him anyway."**

"Grandpa?"

"**Galatea wouldn't hesitate to kill him,"** Wally said. **"Kara knows that, that's why she stopped.**

"Wait," David said. "Can you see them?"

There was a pause.

"**No,"** Wally answered. **"But you can. Somehow our minds are connected. That's how I know."**

"Superwoman's fast," David said, "But that Galatea lady is the same speed."

"**But you're not."**

David froze at that. His grandfather was right. He was faster, especially if…

…If he tapped into the speed force.

………………………………………………………………………

Barbara Gordon immediately answered the phone when it rang. She was relieved to find that Terry had found Matt. Maybe now she could get Mary McGinnis to calm down.

"Terry," Barbara said. "I think you'd better forget about being Batman the rest of the night. The League can handle it. Right now you need to take care of your family."

Terry muttered a curse on the other end.

"McGinnis…" she warned with some amusement. "I know Bruce didn't teach you that language."

"_Okay, fine," _Terry answered. _"By the way, someone else wants to talk to you really quick."_

"Who?" Barbara asked. She was immediately surprised to find that Amanda Waller was now on the other line.

"_Gordon,"_ Waller stated with icy firmness. _"I want you to put a warrant out for the arrest of Alexandra Luthor. I've already contacted some of my friends in the FBI."_

"My jurisdiction is only in Gotham," Barbara reminded her. "Unless Luthor comes this way, I can't do squat."

"_Oh, but you can,"_ Amanda said with dark satisfaction. _"J'onn J'onzz tells me that he senses her in Bludhaven as we speak. She may head your way anytime."_

Commissioner Barbara Gordon felt her eyes narrow dangerously.

How had Luthor gotten to Bludhaven so fast?

……………………………………..

Terry whipped around sharply to glare at Amanda Waller.

"Gotham?" He demanded.

"Possibly," Waller answered.

"I'm not sitting back while she's in _my_ city," Batman warned darkly. "As soon as I take Matt back, I'm going after her."

Amanda hid a satisfied smile. That's exactly what Batman should have said.


	25. The Return

_Sorry for the very late update. I'll be updating at least once or twice a week now that the story is nearly finished. However, I may continue it as a sequel…either in a separate story or as a Part II of this one._

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 25: The Return_

Kara Kent stared at Galatea, rooted to the spot. The smell of fear drifted over from the unfortunate technician who was currently being held hostage by her clone. Kara could hear his heart beating furiously in his chest as the young man attempted to remain calm.

"Let him go," Superwoman warned darkly, her green eyes narrowing into catlike slits. Her clone only laughed in reply as she ever so nonchalantly broke the young man's arm. To his credit the young technician didn't scream, but his face still contorted in pain. Kara's eyes glowed a dangerous red but still she held herself back. Galatea would kill the young man the instant she made a move.

"Oh my, I believe this is what people call a stand off," Galatea smirked. Kara's fists tightened in reply as she considered her options. She had to move fast, whatever she….

It was as if a bomb had exploded inside the hangar bay they were currently fighting in. A sonic boom reverberated off the walls, causing Kara to wince in pain from the noise. Another sonic boom blasted through the hangar and it was only then that Kara realized that Galatea was being pummeled like a rag doll.

Who…

"David!" She gasped. The speed force! Surely he wasn't….?

The nearby wall cracked from the friction of the scarlet speedster as he raced back at Galatea. Fortunately, from what Superwoman could see, David had already moved the young technician to safer ground. The air around the Galatea and David seemed to bend like a mirror. Kara's stomach churned suddenly as she recognized what was happening.

"FLASH!" she screamed. Kara hurled herself forward as the speed force opened up and sucked her clone and the teenager into it.

Kara Kent desperately thrust her hand forward before mass of swirling air could close completely.

……………………………………………………………………………………

David stared around him, memorized. Beautiful, bright lights streamed past him like fireworks and shooting stars. If it wasn't for the sudden weight on his left arm, anchoring him down, the teenager may have been pulled away into the swirling stream of lights.

"Where am I?" he questioned, but he somehow knew the answer.

"You're in the speed force," another voice answered. A red blur briefly materialized into the shape of another Flash.

"It's beautiful," David breathed. "I don't want to leave…" Just like water, it was flowing….flowing…and David Kae so badly wanted to swim with it. He reached his hand out towards the flowing lights as the other Flash's body shimmered like mercury. David only faintly registered a female voice shouting his name as the pressure on his arm weakened.

David reached his arm out.

A blonde figure in white materialized to the right of him and lunged at the teenager. David, too enchanted by this strange world, would have been hit by the flying Galatea if not for the other Flash.

David snapped back to reality. He suddenly recognized the danger as he finally understood what Bruce had been trying to warn him about. The other Flash, Wally West, still had a grip on the much younger man.

"Grandpa…we have to get out of here," David said. As his grandfather looked at him in puzzlement, the teenager wondered if the older man even comprehended. After more than two decades inside the speed force, Wally West may have become too merged with the mysterious energy source.

He turned his head to search for Galatea, but found that he no longer had to worry about another attack. The woman seemed to float some distance off, staring at the streaming lights. The young Flash saw her reach her hands out to the swirling energy and knew that she, like him only seconds ago, was now enchanted by the beauty of this strange place.

David grunted as he felt the pressure increase on his arm as he heard another female voice call out his name. He felt himself slowly pulling forward. Stiffening his resolve, the young man locked his other arm around his grandfather in a near death grip.

"Where're we going?" the older man asked.

"Home," David answered.

……………………………………………………

"Pull!" Kara ordered, gritting her teeth. Donna Troy grimaced as she latched on to the younger woman's arm and pulled. The moment Bruce had realized what had happened, he'd had J'onn warn anyone who could get there quickly to help. The transporters were still offline, but Superman, Green Lantern, Donna, Warhawk, J'onn and Shayera had returned as quickly as possible.

Chameleon had been placed under heavy guard once more while the rest of the Injustice League was rounded up. Diana had taken great pleasure in finally knocking 'some sense' into Jon-El and was currently standing guard with the help of Red Tornado and Dr. Fate. However, it was all the Amazon could do not to come charging in to help David.

Only Luthor yet remained at large. J'onn and Bruce were currently in the control room as they coordinated a search team for the missing woman.

Clark and Shayera soon joined the other two women as they began to pull. Little by little, a red arm began to emerge from the swirling mass of air.

"Harder…than….last time…." Clark grunted, referring to the first time Wally had fallen into the speed force. The weight seemed greater this time.

The four heroes continued to pull as they were soon joined by Warhawk. Rex Stewart grabbed his mother's hand and pulled until his body was covered with sweat, his face darkening from the heavy strain.

Suddenly, there was a loud _pop_ as not one, but two red figures flew out of the hole. The speed force immediately closed up, but the force of the extraction caused everyone to go tumbling away. David crashed headlong into Clark and Donna and lay in a stunned heap on the floor.

The other figure, still tumbling at superspeed, crashed through two bulkheads before skidding to a halt in a nearly empty, but heavily damaged corridor. The other figure came to a rest with his legs and rear end sticking comically up in the air.

Another crash deepened the already fierce migraine in the older Flash as Wonder Woman burst through a wall. Intending to see what had just damaged nearly a whole level of the Watchtower, Diana froze when she saw the red garbed figure in the corridor.

"David?" she asked, uncertain. The other figure groaned and the Amazon's eyes widened. Not David…not David at all…

"I feel like I'm gonna puke," Wally West moaned loudly, rolling over onto his side. He blinked his eyes to clear away the clouded vision just in time to see an upside down red and blue figure descending upon him, arms stretched wide.

"OW OW _OW_!!" Wally screamed. "Diaaanaaaaa! I can't BREATHE!!!"

Diana only lessened her grip slightly as she pulled the younger man into a tearful hug.

……………………………………………………………………………………..

Barbara Gordon was in her element as she coordinated her SWAT teams and police officers with the Bludhaven's police department. Amanda Waller was currently speaking to the head of the FBI as she prepared to have the local National Guard unit mobilized. However, as much as Barbara wanted Luthor quickly captured, a small stubborn part of herself resisted any help from Waller. The pride of the Gotham PD was at stake and Gordon would like nothing better than to one up Amanda Waller.

Luthor was believed to be in the area and the police commissioner was not about to let the crafty red headed woman slip through her fingers, regardless of her sudden rivalry with Waller. If Barbara had to work with the woman, then she would.

Although she was irritated to find out that Terry had disobeyed her orders.

"I thought I told you to go _home_," Barbara snapped into her cell phone. It hadn't taken her long to realize that a pointy eared shadow was also searching for any trace of Alexandra Luthor. She had enough to deal with right now; the police commissioner didn't want an angry and hysterical Mary McGinnis pounding on her door, demanding to know where her oldest child was.

"What do you expect me to do? Sit at home while she's in _my_ city!?" Terry snapped back, equally irritable. Dick had made the mistake a few hours ago of telling Barbara that she and Terry had the same short temper. Barbara had chewed his ass for it.

"It's _my_ city too, McGinnis!" Barbara yelled.

"What would you do if you were in my place," Terry replied sharply. That caused Barbara to pause. Thinking back to a certain young woman in a batsuit, Barbara Gordon finally sighed, but a faint smirk played at her lips.

"I'd give Luthor hell," Barbara finally quipped. She could easily visualize the 'I told you so' grin on Terry's face. Unwilling to give in Barbara finally added, "Fine McGinnis, but your mother isn't my problem anymore. _You_ can tell _her_ why you're not at home."

With silent laugh, Barbara also easily imagined the sudden look of horror on the young man's face as she clicked off the cell phone.

She had no idea what Dick had been talking about. Terry and Bruce were the ones that shared many similar personality quirks.

She and Terry weren't alike at all.


	26. Hunting for Luthor

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 26: Hunting for Luthor_

_Wally is alive._

It was a mantra that Bruce Wayne kept repeating in his head. _Wally is alive. _But the former Caped Crusader had other matters to attend to first: Catching Luthor and keeping an eye on Terry. His son.

Sons. Thank God Terry had found Matt.

Bruce gave a small start when he realized that J'onn was giving him a questioning look. _He overheard my thoughts._ Bruce gave a small sigh; it had been a long time since he'd had to worry about a telepath.

"I'll explain later J'onn," Bruce muttered quietly. The Martian nodded his head. No doubt J'onn had many questions to ask him…to ask all of them. Bruce wasn't the only one still wondering at how J'onn and Kara had ended up in a cryostasis chamber in one of Luthor's hidden bunkers.

"Do you still sense her?" the Dark Knight asked. J'onn closed his eyes and opened them after a few moments.

"Yes, but not as strongly as before. I believe she has found a way to block me."

"Is she still in Bludhaven?" There was a long pause.

"Yes, but she's on the move."

"Green Arrow and Black Canary are in Bludhaven," Bruce said. He trusted the Queen siblings, they had sharp eyes. "The Question's already on the ground," he added. The Dark Knight didn't know as much about Erin Szasz, but Shayera had assured him that the woman was as good a detective as her father.

Speaking of Szaszes, Charles Victor Szasz had called him only a few minutes ago to check up on his other daughter, who was currently sulking in the medical lab. Bruce grudgingly admitted to himself that the younger Szasz daughter must have some talent if she was able to hold her own against Curare.

Vic had said that he and his other daughter currently had a few theories on where Luthor might turn up and would contact the League when they had something more concrete.

………………………………..

"Are we there yet?" Ethan Queen whined.

"No!"

"Are we…"

"No!"

A miserable Green Arrow tried to avoid looking out the window of the Javelin his sister was flying. They had borrowed the Javelin from the Metrotower since the Watchtower's transporters were still offline. The few transporters in the Metrotower had been shut down for repairs, but several technicians had gotten them up and running again. The only problem was that they were only running on a direct link to the Watchtower.

Thankfully they would be landing in Bludhaven any minute now.

Ethan gripped the sides of his seat until his knuckles turned white. He hated heights…therefore he hated flying. Emily Queen sighed, knowing from long experience of her younger brother's phobia. In an attempt to take his mind off of the 'dangerous flight', she asked him a seemingly innocent question slyly.

"So…when are you and Huntress finally going to hook up?'

The Green Arrow blushed several shades of red.

…………………………………………………………………………………

"I'm _fine_ Mom," the Huntress told her mother, Helena Bertinelli Szasz. She was holding the cell phone with her good arm. "It's just a scratch." Actually, it wasn't. Curare's scimitar had sliced a deep gash into her left arm from her shoulder to her elbow, cutting her nearly to the bone. Elizabeth Szasz had originally been in the medical lab in the Metrotower, but had been transferred up to the Watchtower since it had more medical staff.

"_That's not what I hear,"_ Helena replied, despite the fact she probably would have responded in the same way as her daughter.

"Who told you…BOOSTER!" Elizabeth yelled. She grimaced as a sharp pain jumped up her arm. Huntress sighed when Booster Gold, Dr. Stephen Carter, merely smiled innocently at her from across the room. _Damn you Carter!_

Unfortunately one couldn't stay mad at Booster Gold very long, especially when he was just looking out for your best interests. Trying to be angry with the doctor was like trying to be angry with a whimpering puppy, you just couldn't do it. Had it been anyone else, even a certain annoying archer, and Elizabeth Szasz would have throttled them with her good arm.

"How're Erin and Dad doing?" she finally asked with a sigh. The Huntress paused suddenly as her mother spoke, looking curiously at the newest group to enter the medical lab. Shayera and Rex Stewart had just walked in with the two Flashes. Elizabeth had heard rumors that Wally West was somehow back, but she hadn't believed it until now.

"Come on Shayera! I'm _fine_!"

"Wally! You've been in the speed force for twenty-four years, sit down and behave!"

Huntress watched curiously as the infamous Wally West sat obediently on an infirmary bed as Shayera sat next to him. Rex Stewart helped the still dazed David to another bed where the young man immediately laid down. Elizabeth wasn't a doctor, but she was pretty sure that the teenager had a concussion. The female superhero suddenly gave a start.

"Yes _Mom_! I'm listening, I'm not spacing out like Dad!" Elizabeth grumbled.

………………………………………………………………………………..

Terry expertly flew the batmobile towards Bludhaven. According to J'onn, Luthor was still there but believed she would be heading to Gotham soon. Commissioner Gordon had also set up road blocks and check points at all roads, ports, and airfields leading into and out of Gotham. From what he could see, Bludhaven's PD had done the same.

Gordon had acted quickly by having the mayor issue a temporary curfew so it would be easier to move about the city. Luthor was a smart woman; she already knew she was being hunted. There was no point in trying to hide it. Terry tapped a code into the controls in order to patch himself into the Justice League's communication system.

"Arrow? Any luck?" he asked.

"_I hate heights!"_

"_I don't think Batman cares about your irrational phobias_," an unfamiliar voice replied disdainfully.

"_Shut up Sir Shines At Night!"_ Ethan snapped. Terry guessed that the new voice must belong to Sir James, the new Shining Knight. He'd heard from Static that the two men didn't get along very well.

"_What the hell do you want?"_ Black Canary growled. Terry rolled his eyes. Apparently neither Queen particularly cared for the knight. However even Terry, their junior by a number of years, knew that this wasn't the time for petty arguments.

"_I've been assigned to Gotham to help the police,"_ Sir James replied stiffly, clearly not liking the fact that he was only in a supporting role. _"Plastic Woman and I are currently coordinating our activities with Commissioner Gordon."_ Terry heard Ethan groan, but to his credit the archer held his tongue. Green Arrow knew as well as anyone that the League was currently stretched thin due to the attack on the Watchtower.

"Any sign of _Luthor_ yet?" Terry finally asked icily.

"_No,"_ Black Canary replied quickly.

His evident irritation with the argument caused the others to quickly shut up. Bruce, having overheard the squabble up on the Watchtower, allowed himself a hint of a smile as Terry started to take charge.

"Shining Knight and Plastic Woman, give Gordon your full cooperation," Terry ordered. "You'd better respect her orders or…" Terry's unspoken threat hung in the air, but the others caught it. Of course, the young Batman knew fully well that the Commissioner could eat any of them alive if they gave her any lip.

He didn't tell them that though. They could find out on their own.

"Arrow, Canary," Terry added. "I'm almost there. Keep searching, I'll be in touch." He angled the car and pressed down the throttle. The car hurtled towards Bludhaven at top velocity.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"A concussion, two broken ribs, a few bruises and a fractured tibia," Dr. Stephen Carter said calmly. "Nothing we can't heal." The blonde headed doctor had been examining David, who was currently lying tiredly on one of the infirmary beds. The teenager hadn't been seriously injured until he'd crashed headlong into Superman and Donna Troy following his escape from the speed force.

Wally watched curiously as the doctor turned to face him. The Speedster had thought that he was the original Booster Gold at first and had been wondering why Michael Carter was playing doctor in the infirmary. Shayera had been the one to tell him that Stephen was Michael's son and that he _was_ a doctor.

"We'll have to run some tests on you," Stephen frowned thoughtfully. "I see no apparent injuries, but there's no telling what effect being in the speed force has done to your molecular structure. We need to make sure that it's stable."

Wally looked at Shayera as the doctor wandered off, muttering to himself as he pulled up some files on a nearby computer console. A nurse came over and gave David a shot of anesthesia. She then wheeled him into a nearby room so they could realign the bone fragments on the lower part of his right leg.

"Shay…what the hell is going on?" Wally asked in desperation. The last thing he clearly remembered was fighting the Key. There were some blurry memories from his time in the speed force, but that was it. The Scarlet Speedster gulped when he saw that Shayera Hol of all people was crying.

"Shay?" Wally asked carefully. He put his arm around his adoptive sister. "It'll be okay, everything's fine now." Shayera cried harder, but Wally could tell they were tears of joy. But Wally wasn't sure if he could do the same. Despite his confusion at the world around him, Wallace Rudolph West understood three things.

Linda was dead. Barry was dead. Iris was dead.

His wife and children were gone.

………………………………………………………..

"Arrow, I don't care if you're scared of heights…get up there!" Terry yelled. Green Arrow stared warily up at the grappling wire. The building must be at least twenty stories tall.

"I'm not suicidal," Ethan grumbled stubbornly. Terry fought back the urge to throttle the archer.

"I've seen you scale heights before," Batman replied, exasperated. Ethan shook his head.

"Not this big. No way…I'm not going up this!"

Terry sighed. The Question had recently contacted Bruce, who had just contacted him, about a few leads. It turned out that Luthor secretly owned two warehouses and a small company called _Vogel Tech Engineering_. Apparently the three buildings were involved in a lucrative trade in blackmarket weaponry. Erin Szasz had suspected Luthor's involvement, but hadn't had solid proof to bring to the authorities.

Terry didn't know where she had found it, but apparently the Question had found enough evidence to link Luthor to these buildings. Black Canary was currently checking out the warehouse down at the wharf. Question had volunteered herself to check on the other warehouse. This left Terry and Ethan to break into Vogel Tech.

Now if only he could get the stubborn archer moving.

"Arrow!" Terry threatened. Then an evil smile crossed his lips.

"Well, I guess I can tell Sir James…"

"Bah! Sir Jimmy-chan can go rot!" Ethan yelled. But the archer had finally grabbed a hold of the grapling gun. Ethan pressed a button and found himself sliding quickly up the wire. Terry nodded his head and took flight. The two men had decided to break in at opposite ends of the building.

Terry couldn't help smirking though. Sir Jimmy-chan? Sir Shines At Night? How many nicknames did Queen have for the man?

Batman grew serious again as he lighted atop the small skyscraper. He pulled a small laser from his utility belt and set to work at a small ventilation grate. Terry only hoped that Bruce had already hacked in and shut down the security system as they had planned.

Terry missed the fact that his presence hadn't gone unnoticed.

Top of Form

Bottom of Form


	27. Gotham

_It's been a long time since I've updated and I'm very sorry. I don't expect you to remember everything without going back and rereading, so I've included a brief summary of the previous chapter._

_**Recap:**__ Alexandra Luthor was discovered to be in Bludhaven. In preparations for her possible appearance in Gotham City, Police Commissioner Barbara Gordon put the Gotham PD on full alert. The Justice League sent a few of their own to assist the capture of Luthor. The Question found that Luthor owned several buildings within Gotham City. Black Canary was sent to investigate one warehouse while the Question volunteered to check the other. The Green Arrow and Batman are currently breaking into Vogel Tech Engineering, a company secretly owned by Luthor._

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 27: Gotham_

Terry cautiously slid open the grate and slipped into the ventilation shaft. It was a tighter squeeze than the young man had realized. After muttering a few dark words and short prayer that he wouldn't get stuck, he eventually found another opening that dropped into a dark mechanical room.

Switching on his invisibility mode, the young vigilante unlocked the door and padded silently through. A green neon clock glowed dimly down the narrow corridor. Terry wrinkled his nose at the smell of chemicals and disinfectants as he passed a storage room.

Batman froze suddenly in reflex as his instincts went on full alert. Uncertain as to what had alerted him, but experienced enough to trust his instincts, Terry forced himself to keep moving. If someone was watching him, he had no intention of letting it known that he had caught on.

Silence greeted his ears, silence and the faint murmuring of another mechanical room off to his right. The neon clock flickered just as the rumbling of machinery paused for the briefest of seconds.

Terry swore and sprinted down the hall. The wall of the mechanical room exploded outward and pieces of machinery embedded themselves into the opposite wall.

Batman somersaulted over a bench as twisting wires snaked after him. He landed on his feet, spun around, and flung a batarang through several of the wires before they could attach themselves to his suit.

"Debray," Terry scowled. He had wondered where the Frenchman had gone to. Even while the Injustice League had been stopped and Chameleon captured, Luthor and Debray disappeared.

Fernand Debray smiled coldly as the metallic cybernetic implants on his body glowed an ominous green from the neon clock.

"There's no one to help you this time, boy," he warned. Terry smirked.

"Just the way I like it, Monsieur Dumbass."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Green Arrow sighed in relief after he pulled himself through a hole in a window that had just been recently cut. He retracted the grappling gun and reattached it to his belt. Ethan Queen stuck his head out the window and peered down at the long drop of the skyscraper. The archer shuddered and resolved, as he had hundreds of times before, that he would find some way to cure his fear of heights.

Not that he would tell anyone this time though. The last time that he'd stated his resolution, certain Leaguers had only been too _happy_ to help. Ethan still believed himself to be psychologically scarred from being tied to a hang glider by the Question and Blue Beetle and pulled behind Javelin piloted by Static.

"_Queen."_

Ethan paused in the doorway.

"Mr. Wayne?"

"_Terry is fighting Debray,"_ the billionaire answered.

"That cybertech guy? I'll go help…"

"_No. Keep looking for Luthor. If Debray knew where to find Terry, then Luthor probably knows that we're here too."_

"Great," Green Arrow muttered.

…………………………………………………………………………………….

"Right this way, Ms. Gibson."

"Er…you can call me Max, Mr. Young," Max answered. She followed Sam Young, the District Attorney, downstairs. The young woman couldn't quite get over the fact that Commissioner Gordon had so casually allowed her into their house.

"_You look tense."_

"_It's just…" Max looked up and saw the knowing smirk on the older woman's face. It reminded her of Terry._

"_You want to do more," Barbara Gordon answered. Max nodded. The commissioner gave her a long, considering look before picking up her cell phone._

"_My husband's going to come pick you up Gibson. Bruce isn't the only one with toys in his basement. Make yourself useful."_

Max gave a start when the District Attorney slid open a portion of the wall. He keyed a command code into the touch pad on a formerly hidden, heavy metal door. It slid silently open and the two of them stepped inside.

"Holy…" Max gasped. Computer monitors lined the room. Technical equipment lined the office and her hands itched to touch them. Sam Young smiled faintly down at her.

"Barbara doesn't use this much anymore, but she always runs a diagnostic test on it twice a year. She came down here a few days ago and ran a systems check. The equipments' probably not up to date but it works…"

"Are you kidding!?" Max exclaimed excitedly. "This is some serious hardware in here! Why…?" Sam hid a chuckle at her enthusiasm.

"Barbara didn't immediately quit the mask and tights 'business' after she hung up her Batgirl costume. She took on the name Oracle and became a hacker and an information broker. My wife doesn't do it anymore obviously, but she keeps this down in here in case of emergencies. I guess old habits die hard." Sam paused and gave a short laugh.

"She was the best at what she did," he added, "although the Question apparently always claimed that his hacking abilities were far superior. I think Barbara worked with his wife when they were still the Birds of Prey…"

"Who?" Max asked, but the DA waved her question off. She looked around the room and back at the older man next to her.

"The commissioner, she wants me to help track Luthor, doesn't she?" the young woman asked.

"Barbara said you were bright."

Max smiled brightly as she turned to the main monitor, her fingers flying over the keyboard. Within a few minutes, she had hacked into security cameras across Gotham and brought up their images on the multiple screens. Searching through the computer's database, she found the type of program she was looking for.

"What are you doing?" Sam asked.

"I've pulled up pictures of Luthor. I'm having the computer search through all the camera footage for any person that has twenty-five percent and above match," she answered. The District Attorney watched the energetic teenager for several minutes before turning around and walking upstairs.

He wondered if Maxine Gibson was walking the same path that Barbara Gordon had once tread.

……………………………………………………………..

Terry dodged a weapon's discharge as he pressed a finger to his ear.

"Arrow, find anything?"

"_No, nada, nein. I'm also not picking up anything on the low range scanner, but something could be blocking me."_

"What about…son of a…!" Terry cursed as a plasma discharge grazed his right arm, burning through the material. _Shit._ His arm screaming in pain, the young man forced himself to focus on Debray and not on his injury.

"_You okay? Want me to come help?"_

"No! Keep looking! I'll handle this doofus," Terry shot back. He was Batman. He'd already gotten his butt kicked twice by the European, he wasn't about to let it happen a third time.

Terry jumped out of the way as Debray sent more cybernetic wires at him. If they connected to his batsuit, they would drain all the power from it like before.

The young vigilante spun on the ball of his left foot, bent, and kicked up with his right one. There was a loud crack as his foot met Debray's jaw.

……………………………………………………………………

The Watchtower was still on full alert. Leaguers and technicians bustled about their business as injured friends were attended to and criminals rounded up. Others were busy tracking Alexandra Luthor.

Wally West sat quietly in a private infirmary room as he watched his sleeping grandson.

He had a grandson.

Wally rubbed his eyes and felt very tired. His body ached, probably an effect of being pulled from the speed force after more than two decades.

Two decades. God.

There was a small mirror in the room. The speedster walked over to it and peered at his reflection. A pair of green eyes stared tiredly back. The faint hint of graying hair at his temple betrayed the fact that he was still a man physically in his forties.

"Why're you still here?" he asked his reflection.

Shayera had told about his wife and children. Reluctantly. Hesitantly. Wally had dragged the general details out of her. The rest, he had found himself during a moment of spare time. The young Booster Gold had given him a sympathetic smile before offering up his computer console. Wally had spent several seconds speed reading through old news files.

Dead. Oh dear God how he wanted to kiss Linda. He wanted to hug his son, to kiss his daughter on the cheek.

No more.

Feeling old, Wally turned to the one family member he had left. Zipping back to the younger man's side, the grandfather gently touched his grandson's face. He had Linda's nose.

"I'm sorry," Wally whispered. His memories from the speed force were a blur; a jumbled mess that sometimes came to him with a frightening clarity, other times it was smoky mist.

Lost and feeling out of touch with time, the Flash buried his face into his hands and wept.

……………………………………………………………..

Barbara Gordon stared moodily up at the night sky as she walked by a police check point at the Arthur Kane Memorial Bridge. All ports, harbors, airports, and roads leading out of Gotham were locked down. Nothing had left. National Guard troops were even stationed at various points along the perimeter.

She turned around and walked back to her car. An elderly woman was waiting impatiently for her, sitting imperiously in the passenger's seat.

"Luthor won't come this way, you know that Gordon," Amanda Waller pointed out. Barbara grunted, conceding the point. Waller looked at the younger woman before scanning her sharp eyes around her.

Gordon knew, obviously. But like her, the police commissioner didn't want to take any chances.

"How did she get to Gotham so fast?" Barbara asked suddenly. Amanda looked sideways at her. "Did she have a transporter?"

"Possibly," Amanda answered.

"Then who's to say that she won't use one to escape somewhere else? Why even come to Gotham?"

The two women stared at each other. Time was running out. If Luthor had access to a transporter, she could travel to anywhere in the world. For her to risk coming to Gotham…

"She's after something," Waller said. "There's something Luthor's looking for and she doesn't want to leave until she gets it."

……………………………………………………………….

In an empty warehouse near Miller Harbor, the Question stared thoughtfully at a pile of moldy crates and trash. Erin Szasz, daughter of the original Question, walked carefully around the trash heap. She reached across and touched a rat infested crate.

"Hurm…"

Odd. Such a mess of half decayed debris should be giving off a stench. The Question looked down at her watch, then reached into her pocket and pulled out a cigarette lighter. She crumpled up a wad of notepad paper and lit it on fire. The vigilante blew on it once through her mask before tossing it onto the garbage heap.

Landing lightly next to a discarded McDonalds cup, the small fire burned down. Nothing else caught fire.

"Solid then. No smell. Is this a hologram?" she asked herself. The Question looked around her. Perhaps the whole inside of the warehouse was a hologram.

"Watchtower," she said. "I may have something."

……………………………..

_Author's note: Long time since I updated, sorry. My semester was really busy. I promise that the next update will be within the next few days. I want to finish this story within the next 2-3 weeks._


	28. Those Who Sleep

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 28: Those Who Sleep_

David winced from the pain as he opened his eyes. He blinked several times to clear the blurriness of his eyes. He was in an infirmary room. Great.

"Uh…David?" An uncertain voice asked. David turned his head to his left to see that his grandfather was hovering anxiously near him.

"I'm okay," the younger man answered, his voice cracking from dryness. Wally zoomed out of the room and came back with a glass of cold water. The teenager took the offered cup gladly, as it also offered him a few extra seconds to think. This was the first time he had been alone with his grandfather since being pulled from the speed force.

"Um…" He watched as his grandfather rubbed the back of his head with uncertainty. "Geez, how do I even start?"

"You…could tell me what's happened since I've been out," David offered, choosing what seemed to be the easiest ground for now. Besides, he really did want to know what was going on.

His grandfather smiled.

…………………………………………………………………..

Barbara Gordon tapped her fingers together as she listened to an update from Bruce. Neither Black Canary nor Green Arrow had found Luthor. Terry was still fighting Debray, but she had faith in the boy.

The Question, however, had found something interesting.

After giving a call to the League, Shayera Hol and her son had gone down to join the woman in the seemingly abandoned warehouse.

Except that it wasn't. Not abandoned anyway. Bruce had just informed her that most of the decrepit appearance was merely a hologram. Inside was state of the art equipment. She'd ordered Max to concentrate her efforts on hacking into the computer database inside the building. As of yet however, they hadn't determined what was hidden there.

What was clear to the police commissioner, however, was that there was something of value in this place. Something that Luthor would risk capture to get.

But what?

…………………………………………………………………

Red energy bolts ripped through the wall behind Terry. Growing ever more furious, Debray charged him. The young Batman threw himself onto his back and kicked up with his feet. Terry used his hands and his momentum to catch the European hard in the stomach.

Debray coughed as he spat out blood. Not slowing down, Terry grabbed the man's left shoulder and hauled him up. Reaching back his fist, Batman punched him hard in the nose.

_Street Fighting Lesson #3:_ Hitting the nose blurs the eyes and causes pain. It's a great way to fight dirty.

Terry had been a master of street fighting long before Bruce had begun training him.

Locking an arm tight around the European's head, Terry wrestled the larger man to the ground and pinned him. Okay, so he didn't quite have the fighting finesse that Bruce had possessed in his younger days, but it worked. He'd always been more of a brawler anyway.

"_That's not enough Terry,"_ Bruce said.

"Yeah, I know. There's got to be a way to disable his…wait…" Terry cut off as Debray's cybernetics attempted to attach themselves to the batsuit again. Looking around, Terry saw that there was an emergency generator near them.

Thinking fast, and hoping for luck, Terry grabbed the cybernetic wires and thrust them into the generator. Whipping out an electrified batarang, Batman jammed it into the machine. Debray screamed as a massive surge of electricity overloaded his cybernetics. There were several small explosions as the electricity coursed through the man's body and blew out the pieces of circuitry. 

Moaning in pain, Fernand Debray lay motionless on the floor.

"_Good job Terry."_ Terry smirked as he felt rather than heard the undertone of pride in Bruce's voice.

………………………………………………………………….

"What is this?" Shayera Hol asked. She, her son, and the Question stared silently up at a series of cryogenic tubes. With Max's help, they had succeeded in shutting off the hologram projectors.

"We already knew that Luthor was experimenting with Cadmus's cloning program," Erin Szasz answered calmly. "Is it any surprise that she would possess a clone of her father?" The masked vigilante tapped a few commands into a nearby computer console. The cryogenic tubes lowered down from the ceiling until they were suspended mere centimeters above the floor.

"How many are there?" Warhawk asked, gaping at the sight. There was a pause.

"There's close to fifty cryogenic chambers," the Question answered. "And it appears as if they all contain a clone of Lex Luthor." Shayera shuddered as she walked among the motionless clones.

"Are they really _all_ alive?" she whispered. The Thanagarian looked through the glass to peer at the face of one of the sleeping Luthors.

"Hmm…"

Shayera looked over her shoulder to see what the Question had found. The other woman was now sitting at the computer console, staring intently at the screen.

"What?" Shayera asked. The Question didn't answer right away. Instead, she attempted to input some codes into the computer. That failing, Erin Szasz muttered an Italian curse and pressed a finger to communication link in her ear.

"Gibson," the Question said. Immediately, the voice of Maxine Gibson came over the line.

"_What?"_

"I need you to hack into this system. There's an encrypted file that I'm unable to open."

"_Which one?"_ Max asked, still seated in Barbara's computer room.

"Tk143, it's a subfile of a folder marked 'Lazarus Project.'," the Question answered. She crossed her fingers and waited impatiently as the teenager hacked into the file. Erin Szasz then drummed her fingers on the table.

"_Got it!"_ Max finally yelled triumphantly. Erin smiled at the younger woman's enthusiasm. Then her eyes narrowed as she studied the screen. Apparently Luthor had been conducting experiments using chemicals from the Lazarus pits. The Luthors must have been in contact with Ra's al Ghul. Wayne would be interested to hear about this.

Even after his death, Lex Luthor had not ceased in his search for immortality.

"But how?" the Question pondered quietly. What was the purpose of keeping nearly fifty clones of the man, and trying to make them immortal no less? If Alexandra was trying to resurrect her father, there was no point as the man was dead. His memories wouldn't be…

Wait…

"Gibson," Erin said. "Nearly a year ago, wasn't there a case where Batman encountered the artificially saved memories of a man named Richard Vance?"

"_Yeah,"_ Max answered. _"He'd had his memories digitally saved. What Terry had encountered was an artificial intelligence. Why is that important?"_

"Would you know how to look for an A.I. if it's hidden in the system?" the Question asked sharply.

"_Erm…I think so…."_

"Yes or no! Either you can or you can't!"

"_Yes!"_ Max replied, taken aback_. "I can."_

"Then look, fast!" Erin ordered.

"What's going on?" Shayera asked, having listened in on the conversation. The Question bolted out of her seat as she charged in amongst the clones. Where was it? With long, graceful strides she swept from cryotube to cryotube.

"What the hell's going on Question?" Warhawk yelled. The half-Thanagarian glared irately at the woman who continued to ignore him. He and his mother exchanged looks.

"I'll go after her," Shayera finally said. "You stay here and keep watch." With that, the Thanagarian gave a frustrated sigh and took off after the Question. If it wasn't one Szasz, it was another. All of them shared the annoying characteristic of charging headlong into danger and not telling you why.

…………………………………………………………

"Ra's al Ghul?" Diana asked, clearly surprised. Bruce had a dark expression on his face. The Amazon princess looked over at the man she still cared for.

"When was the last time you encountered him, Bruce?" she asked. His expression darkened.

"A few months ago," he replied tersely. Diana's eyebrows shot up in surprise. Bruce eyed her carefully before adding reluctantly.

"He'd taken over his daughter's body and was trying to take over mine."

Diana stared at him.

"It's a long story," Bruce explained, not really explaining. He tried to ignore a pair of blue eyes threatening to pierce through his thin layer of protective isolation. A very _thin _layer…it had been thicker, but Terry had done quite an effective job of demolishing it with typical McGinnis finesse.

"I like long stories," the Amazon countered. Bruce sighed. She was as stubborn as ever.

"Later," Bruce promised. He knew full well that she'd hold him to it.

"So what now?" Diana questioned instead. Bruce gave a tired sigh, shocking Diana. It still shocked her, how he had aged. When he was younger, the indomitable Bruce Wayne had seemed eternal…impervious to the inconvenience of age. 

The fact that Bruce was as human as the next man still shocked her.

"We'll need to study the clones," Bruce answered.

"But what do we _do_ with them?" Diana asked. "They're all technically alive…we can't just kill them!"

"I never said anything about destroying them," Bruce replied tensely. "But before then, we have to find a different Luthor." He paused and closed his eyes, feeling his age. Terry had turned Debray into police custody. The teenager had briefly come back to the Watchtower to get his wounds checked.

In a few minutes, the boy would head back down to Gotham to join the Question, Warhawk, and Shayera. No…he wasn't a boy. Neither he nor David had any right to be still called children. After a moment of reflection, Bruce conceded that Max as well was earning her right to be involved with the League.

"Question believes that Luthor may have digitally saved his memories," Bruce finally said. "It's possible that his daughter has been planning to transfer those memories into one of the clones."

There was a short silence and the two heroes thought about the implications of it. After a moment, Diana tentively reached out a hand and laid it gently on Bruce's shoulder.

"I never stopped loving you," she said quietly. Bruce swallowed a lump in his throat, but didn't answer. He didn't know how to answer. After a moment, Diana reluctantly removed her hand.

"I'm glad you found Terry," she added. "It makes me glad. I don't think he realizes how much he's done for you."

"Oh…he understands more than he lets on," Bruce answered. "Even when he's being a stubborn pain in the ass, he's remarkably good at reading people."

"Reminds me of someone else I know."

Bruce looked sharply up at Diana, but instead of irritation, he found that she merely wore a wry smile. A similar smile flickered on his face.

"I can't imagine who that would be," he replied.

………………………………………………………………………….

Wally smiled to himself as he watched his sleeping grandson. The two of them had spent the last few hours doing nothing but talking. David had finally drifted back to sleep, still exhausted from his wounds.

The older speedster felt more at peace with himself. It would take him a long time, but Wally knew he still had family. He still had friends.

That was the most important thing in the world.

Wally quietly stood up and bent down to kiss his grandchild on the cheek. Then he silently crept out of the room and zoomed off through the Watchtower.

The Flash was not a man who could sit still, especially not when the people he cared for still needed help. Although still confused by recent events, Wally knew that the current crisis wasn't over. He'd lend a helping hand any way he could.

Besides, it had been twenty-four years since he'd last antagonized any of his friends. 

…………………….

_Sorry for the long delayed update. I've been busy with school. I also leave for Japan in two weeks for a four month long study abroad. I'll have internet access, so I'll make every attempt to update while I'm there. At most though, I'll probably only be able to update my stories at least once a month. I'll do my best to update this story at least once more before I leave._

_Two Batman Beyond episodes were referenced in this chapter: "Lost Soul" and "Out of the Past."_


	29. Digital Warfare, Pt I

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 29: Digital Warfare, Pt. I_

It didn't take Wally long to make his way up the control room. Certain parts of the Watchtower had been changed or redesigned over the years he was absent, but the basic layout had remained the same.

"Wally!" Diana cried out, surprised. "What are you doing here?" The Amazon princess rushed forward, ready to hug the speedster again.

"Whoa, easy there!" Wally replied. He was still mindful of the bone crushing hug that she'd given him after exiting the speed force. His ribs were still sore. Diana smiled, taking the hint. However, it didn't stop her from giving a gentle hug.

"Hey, who's the old guy?" Wally asked, noticing an old man sitting at a computer console. The man swiveled around and stared at him with piercing blue eyes that Wally recognized immediately.

"Oh, hi Bruce," Wally said sheepishly.

"Old guy?" Bruce asked, raising an amused eyebrow. Despite the billionaire's impassive face, Wally detected the sea of emotion that was swirling just beneath his blue eyes. The speedster zipped over and hugged his friend.

"Yup, long time no see, huh Old Guy?" Wally asked. He saw a muscle twitch on Bruce's face. Then, before even Wally could react, Bruce reached up and pulled hard on Wally's right ear. There was still quite a bit of strength left in those old muscles.

"Ow! OW! What the hell is this for!?" the speedster yelped. A too familiar smirk rose on the old man's face.

"This is for scaring us and making us think you were dead," Bruce replied.

"Senile old man, let me go!"

Bruce let go, but not before he wrapped his left arm around Wally for the briefest of hugs. The billionaire immediately let go after a couple of seconds, turning back to the computer console as if the encounter hadn't happened. Wally rubbed his ear and smiled to himself. Coming from Bruce Wayne, that small hug was the equivalent of a bear hug and a crying session combined.

"I'm glad you're back," Bruce said after a moment.

"I told you before, remember?" Wally asked. "We have to retire to the old people's home together so that I can chase you down the hall in my wheelchair."

"I have a dog," Bruce quipped back. "He likes to bite people if he thinks they'll hurt me."

"Pfff, who said I'd hurt you?" Wally asked. "I'll only be chasing you down because I'll want to borrow your set of false teeth. I've got to eat my steak somehow you know." Bruce paused a moment to cover his face. Wally strongly suspected that the old man was trying to hide a smile.

"So who's going to be in charge of this mad house of a retirement home?" Diana asked wryly.

"It's not a 'retirement home' Diana. It's an 'old people's home'," Wally corrected. "And J'onn's going to be in charge. He's going to feed us Oreos everyday for breakfast."

Diana smiled at the thought. But before she could ask where her place would be in all of this, Bruce interrupted.

"The reunion's going to have to wait Wally," Bruce said. "We still have a situation that we have to deal with."

"I know," Wally answered. "That's why I came down here. What's going on?"

…………………………………………..

Terry stared. Even though the young man had seen quite a few strange things in his still brief career as Batman, this was still new. True, he had already seen cryochambers before when he and David had discovered the sleeping J'onn Jonnz and Kara Kent. However, there was a disturbing air to the enclosure and Terry wasn't sure if it was because of the clones or something else.

It didn't help that Shayera Hol, one of the Original Seven, was clearly unsettled. However, she kept up a calm and professional demeanor that Terry instantly admired.

"They…they're not all the same age," Rex Stewart noted. Terry blinked and looked closer at the occupants of the tubes. He realized that Warhawk was correct. All of the fifty clones ranged in age.

"That is correct," the Question said calmly. "The youngest ones appear to be infants while the oldest one is about sixty."

"Why?" Shayera asked. The Question shrugged.

"Gibson, have you found anything yet?" Erin Szasz asked.

"_No,"_ Maxine Gibson replied. _"But I'll keep looking."_

"We should bring someone else down here," the Question continued. "I'm not a scientist or a doctor, but it looks as if several of the clones have been experimented on. Others appear to have irregular physical readings coming from their bodies. They may be on the verge of breaking down.

"What about the others?" Warhawk asked.

"The others appear to be healthy, but as I said. I'm not a doctor," Erin Szasz repeated.

"We need Booster," Shayera said. She nearly suggested Bruce out of habit, but her friend no longer was physically of an age where he could be in the midst of a potential battle zone. Knowing the original Batman, his physical limitation must be driving him insane.

"Yeah," her son agreed. "But this is too much, even for him. It's going to take a whole team to look through all of this."

"Maybe," Terry finally said. "But it's still too dangerous to bring civilians down here. Bruce would come down here, but he's too busy on the Watchtower." The young man paused. "Of all the active League members, Booster Gold's the only trained doctor, isn't he?"

"We have a few scientists as well, but they're either busy on other missions or are injured from the attack on the Watchtower," Shayera answered.

"Get Booster," the Question said grimly. "We need _someone_ down here."

……………………………………………

"Come on Doc," Wally pleaded.

"No," Booster Gold repeated. Wally West put a pout on his face, but it still had no effect on the doctor.

"You're good," the speedster said. "You're almost as stubborn as Bruce." The doctor raised an eyebrow.

Wally hid a sigh. Damn Bruce, he was the whole reason that Wally was back in the infirmary in the first place. Bruce and Diana both refused to let the speedster beam down to the surface to assist in the Gotham mission.

"_We still don't know if it's safe for you,"_ Bruce had said_. "We have no way of knowing yet how being in the speed force affected your body."_

"_Oh please,"_ Wally had replied, rolling his eyes_. "I'm the Flash. I'll be fine."_

"_Dr. Carter hasn't yet received the results from the initial tests he ran on you,"_ Bruce continued. Wally paused in thought, a sly smile growing on his face.

"_The new Booster Gold, right?"_ Wally asked. _"So if the Doc gives me permission, you'll let me go?"_ Bruce opened his mouth to reply, but the speedster didn't wait around to see what it was.

Unfortunately, convincing Dr. Stephen Michael Carter to let him join the mission wasn't proving as easy as Wally thought it would. Despite his quiet and kind nature, the man was obstinate as hell.

"Mr. Wayne is correct," Booster Gold continued. "Your molecular structure shows signs that it may not have yet stabilized since you left the speed force."

"You know," Wally suddenly said, trying a different tactic. "You're a good doctor. Kind, wise…I'll bet you have a great bedside manner!" The red head smiled charmingly at the blonde haired doctor.

There was a pause.

"Nice try," Stephen said. "But no."

There was another pause.

"Flattery doesn't work on you, does it?" Wally sighed.

"No, but for some reason people keep trying," Stephen Carter answered. He picked up a piece of medical equipment and held it close to Wally's body.

"See?" Booster continued. "Your heart rate keeps fluctuating. I don't want you down there where I can't monitor you." Wally sighed again. The first Booster Gold had been so much easier to trick. Flattery had been his Achilles' Heel.

Dr. Stephen Carter paused suddenly and held a finger to his ear. Wally watched as the doctor listened to the comlink in his ear.

"Yes, I understand," Booster Gold replied. "I'll be ready to transfer down in a few minutes." Wally's ears perked up at that.

"What's going on?" he asked, hiding the spark of hope in his chest.

"I've been ordered down to Gotham," the doctor replied. "They want me to…oh know," he sighed, having seen the mischievous grin on the older man's face. "No."

"You didn't want me to be where you can't keep an eye on me, right?" Wally asked. The speedster smiled triumphantly. The doctor sighed.

"You were an extortionist in a past life, weren't you?" Booster Gold asked. Wally shrugged.

"No idea," he answered. "By the way, is there a spare mask around here that I can borrow?"

………………………………………………………..

Max stared at the computer monitor. _Could it be?_

Her fingers flew over the keyboard, but several files that she had recently opened suddenly closed and locked down. Someone was trying to reconfigure the system.

"Watchtower," Max said. "Someone else is hacking into Luthor's system. As of yet I can't figure out if it's her or that A.I. that Question told me to search for." Bruce Wayne's voice instantly replied over the speaker.

"_What are they doing?"_ he demanded. A bead of sweat dripped down her face, but Max wasn't able to wipe it off. She urged her fingers to move faster as they continued their dance over the computer console.

"They're trying to download something…" she started to say.

"_Stop them!"_ Bruce commanded. The tone in his voice made Max's throat become dry. For perhaps the first time, she felt a sense of what the old man must have been like in his prime.

"I'm trying," she said.

"_Do it Gibson!"_

"It's not my fault!" Max finally shot back. "If it's Luthor, she already knows how the system's designed and where to look! The same thing goes if it's an artificial intelli…"

"_Gibson,"_ Bruce said dangerously. A cold feeling washed over Max and she shuddered. _"Like it or not, you are a part of this team now. There are no complaints. There are no 'it's not my fault.' We've all run into situations that had us at a disadvantage."_ There was a pause, but Max didn't dare breath.

"_You have a job Gibson,"_ Bruce Wayne continued. _"Do it. If you don't…"_ he didn't bother to finish. Max understood him all too well.

"I understand," she said weakly. Max paused and cringed at how small her voice had sounded. She took a deep breath as her fingers continued to move.

"I understand," she repeated, forcing her voice to sound stronger.

"_Good,"_ Bruce answered. _"Never forget that."_ Max wasn't sure, but it sounded as if there was a touch of satisfaction in his voice that time.

The young woman attacked the digital threat with a vengeance, new determination driving her previously weary arms. She didn't want to let Bruce Wayne down. She didn't want to let the Justice League down. Most of all, she was determined not to let Terry and David down.

Even if it took every thing that she had, Maxine Gibson was determined to prove that she was capable of following in Barbara Gordon's shoes. The commissioner had trusted her enough to let her help. Max didn't want to disappoint her.

"Alright, let's dance Witch," Max muttered. A small smirk twitched at her lips.

"Time for you to meet the new Oracle."

……………………………………………………..

_This was a bit of a short chapter, but I promise that the next one will be longer. I'm also sorry for the delayed updating that I've been doing for this story. I promise that I will do a better job of updating this regularly._


	30. Digital Warfare, Pt II

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 30: Digital Warfare, Pt. II_

Bruce Wayne looked away from the computer screens to see Wally and Booster Gold exit a turbolift. The old man felt a flash of anger towards the doctor.

"You're taking him with you?" Bruce asked coldly. He knew full well that Wally's body was still unstable.

"Against my better judgment," the doctor sighed. A perturbed look flashed across his face and Bruce felt his anger vanish.

"He conned you into it, didn't he?" Bruce asked dryly. The doctor nodded as Wally smiled innocently.

"He's good at that," the billionaire added. Wally's smile widened.

"Don't worry," Dr. Carter said. "At the first sign of trouble I'm shipping him back up to you." The smile fell from Wally's face.

"What!?" Wally asked. This time, it was the doctor's turn to smile innocently.

"You didn't expect a doctor to be overruled by his patient, did you?" Booster Gold asked serenely. A hint of steel lay beneath his quiet voice. Wally gulped, causing Bruce's lips to twitch in amusement.

"Um…no…" Wally said reluctantly. The speedster noted in annoyance that Diana was chuckling softly as she watched the exchange.

"You're not going down there without a mask, are you?" Bruce asked suddenly. He sternly gazed at the younger man, which didn't affect him in the least.

"Pff…of course not," Wally answered. He held up a black mask that was similar to what Dick Grayson had once worn. Booster Gold had pulled it out of a storage room for Wally to borrow.

"Why not dress as the Flash?" Diana asked. "You were wearing a Flash suit when you were pulled out of the Speed Force." Wally gave a shrug.

"David's the Flash now," Wally answered. "I don't feel right wearing it." Diana smiled at that.

"I hate to interrupt, but we need to leave," Dr. Carter interrupted politely. Wally nodded and put the mask on.

"Lead on Dr. B," the speedster said. The doctor paused in surprise and raised an eyebrow.

"What?" he asked. Wally smiled and placed a hand over the younger man's shoulder.

"Booster, Booster…there is so much I have to teach you," he said.

"I assure you, that I will most likely be an unwilling student," Stephen replied.

"You have much to learn, young Padawan," Wally said. The doctor smiled wryly as they beamed down to the planet.

…………………………………………………………………

After the two men left, Bruce turned and looked at Diana.

"He reminds me a little of J'onn," Bruce remarked, surprised.

"Who reminds you of J'onn?" A different voice asked. Bruce and Diana turned around to see the elderly figure of John Stewart shuffling slowly their way, leaning on a cane.

"John," Diana greeted him warmly. "I'm glad you could join us."

"My son and wife are on the mission, how could I not?" John asked. The old Marine settled himself down into a nearby chair with a sigh. "These old bones will be the death of me," he mumbled.

"Feeling age catching up, are you John?" Bruce smirked.

"This old man can still cause trouble," John quipped back. Beneath his wrinkled face, his dark eyes still held a window to the will of iron that remained below his aging body.

"I never had any doubt about that," Bruce said wryly.

"So…who're we talking about?" John asked again.

"Booster," Diana answered.

"Ah…good kid," John observed.

"Tell me about him," Bruce said. He knew next to nothing about the younger man. He'd begun to look through all of the files on the newer League members, but he hadn't yet made it to the new Booster Gold.

"Why are you interested?" Diana asked.

"Because I'm me," came the response. The Amazon smiled.

"He was in the army reserves for six years, where he was trained as a medic," Diana said.

"Enlisted?"

"Hmm…no, I think he was an officer."

"Where'd he go to medical school?" Bruce asked.

"That I don't remember," Diana answered. "You'll have to look that up. He runs a clinic now in San Antonio. I know he's involved in a lot of social work, because he also volunteers for the Red Cross." Diana paused as she watched Bruce work.

"He's done a lot for the League," John added. "We usually send him along on the more dangerous missions since he also acts as a field medic for the League. He's also instituted emergency medical training for the League members to take part in."

"We had that before," Bruce pointed out. "Everyone in the League, whether a Leaguer or support staff, was required to learn CPR and the basics."

"We did, we still do actually," Diana said. "But he added a more specialized program specifically for the Leaguers. Those who complete the program earn certificates to be stand in medics." This caught Bruce's attention.

"This is so that there can be a trained medic on each League mission," Bruce stated. That was a smart move. "How many have completed the program?"

"Five so far, including myself," the Amazon answered. "It's a pretty intense program, but it's worth it."

"Who else has completed it?"

"Green Arrow, Mr. Miracle, Aquagirl, and Captain Marvel," Diana answered. "At the moment, Huntress is the only one in the program. However, I know that Green Lantern has expressed interest in it."

"We should make it a goal to have at least a quarter of the League trained in it," Bruce said. The old man made it a silent goal to shove Terry and David into the program. It would be good for them to have emergency medical training anyway.

"We?" John asked. "I take it you've decided to become more involved in the League again?" He saw Bruce's lips twitch into a brief smile.

"It appears that you need me," Bruce Wayne said. "Someone has to keep Kent in line. It's a wonder that the League was even still _functioning_ with him in charge."

"Bruce," Diana admonished.

"_What_?"

"You know what."

"Enlighten me," he said.

"Stubborn ass."

…………………………………………

"Booster, I'm glad you could…" Shayera stopped in mid-sentence and glared at the red haired man standing next to Booster Gold. Wally grinned innocently.

"Wa…Flash!" Shayera yelled. "Why are you here?"

"I think you have me confused with my grandson," Wally said. "He's the Flash, not me." Shayera gave an agitated growl and smacked Wally in the arm. The speedster gave a yelp.

"Booster let me come," Wally explained hurriedly. Shayera turned her glare on the doctor. However, Booster Gold ignored it as he began to examine the clones.

"Uh…but he said I have to go back at the first sign of trouble," Wally added reluctantly. He didn't want the doctor to be the target of Shayera's wrath.

"Has there been any sign of Luthor yet?" The speedster asked suddenly.

"No, but Max is currently tracking the source of the hack. We should know pretty soon," the Question answered. She was currently walking among the cryotubes.

"Can't J'onn sense her location?" Wally asked.

"No," Terry answered. "He says that something is blocking him."

Wally turned and studied the younger man. This was the first time that he had personally encountered the new Batman. David had told him a little about Terry McGinnis and Wally had looked forward to meeting his grandson's friend. However, Wally West was a professional. Now wasn't the time to bombard the teenager with questions.

Even so, Wally couldn't resist teasing the younger man.

"I hear you can actually communicate like a normal human being," Wally said. "I'm surprised you haven't been corrupted yet by the King of Gloom." The speedster smiled when he heard a snicker from the teenager.

"The King of Gloom can communicate pretty well when he's yelling at me," Batman answered. "Being a nonsociable workaholic is his hobby."

"You forgot the god complex," Wally added.

"Nah, I pretty much prevent him from having one nowadays," Terry McGinnis said. "Me driving him up and down the wall on a daily basis does that to him."

"My God," Wally said with mock surprise. "I've found a kindred spirit."

"Congratulations Flash," Shayera said dryly. "But we've got work to do. You two can be 'kindred spirits' later."

Wally chuckled as he turned his mind to the mission. However, the subject of his and Terry's conversation couldn't resist adding his input from up on the Watchtower.

"_The King of Gloom will be waiting for your return,"_ an irritated Bruce said flatly.

"You know what?" Wally asked. "Since I'm not officially the Flash anymore, I'm thinking about changing my name to Bat Flash."

Bruce Wayne muttered incoherently from his vantage point up on the Watchtower.

……………………………………………………………………

Maxine Gibson felt a smirk playing at her lips. She had succeeded in blocking about twenty five percent of the files off from the hacker so far. The teenager was also fairly certain she knew where the hack was coming from.

However, she didn't want to be fairly certain. She wanted to be _sure_.

The teenager was so intent on her job that she was startled by a hand on her shoulder. Sam Young apologized for disrupting her concentration. The district attorney placed a cup of cold water next the teenager.

"You look thirsty," he said. He pulled out a rag and wiped the sweat off of the young woman's face as she worked.

"Barbara's still busy, but she wanted me to tell you to keep up the good work," Sam said. His wife had told him that Max might need a little encouragement. Barbara was keeping up on the situation, but was currently unable to do more to help the teenager.

"Thanks," Max muttered, her mind still focused on the task at hand. Sam took no offense. However, he decided to stay nearby in case she needed support.

"Hah!" she suddenly shouted. "I've got it! Watchtower, I'm sending you the coordinates of the hack. It's not far from the warehouse!"

"_Understood,"_ Bruce Wayne answered. _"We'll take care of it."_

Max nodded absentmindedly as she now turned her full focus to the other task at hand. She still had to stop the hack.

………………………………………

"Let's go," Shayera ordered. "Warhawk, you come with me. Batman and Question, stay here with…"

"I'm going," the Question said suddenly. Shayera's eyes flashed at the younger woman.

"That's an order…"

"I have business with Luthor," Erin Szasz said coldly. "Or did you forget what her father did to mine?" The Thanagarian paused and nodded after a moment. She'd forgotten that Lex Luthor had been responsible for beating up Vic Sage and handing him over to Cadmus to be tortured.

"Fine. Batman, stay here with Booster and Flash…"

"Bat Flash…" the speedster corrected.

"Shut up Wally."

"I love you too Shay."

Shayera rolled her eyes as she, her son, and the Question hurried out of the warehouse. The Thanagarian couldn't help smiling as they made their way to the coordinates that Max had sent them.

It was good to have Wally back.

After they left, Terry turned to Wally West and raised an eyebrow.

"Bat Flash?" he questioned.

"What? I'd like to see you come up with a better name," Wally countered.

"_Wally,"_ Bruce warned.

"I think it's perfect," Terry smirked.

"_Terry!"_ Bruce shouted.

"I think we're going to get along just fine," Wally said. He and Terry shook hands.

……………………………..

Alexandra Luthor hissed when the walls of her hiding place shook. The red haired woman activated a few security measures as she continued to focus on the computer in front of her.

"Damn it," she swore. Someone was preventing her from accessing her own files. Luthor had managed to download some, but not the ones she was really after. Whoever was blocking her was good.

The walls shook again. A sudden current of energy finally blasted through. Alexandra cursed as a woman wielding a mace flew through, followed by her son and a faceless woman in a blue trenchcoat.

No choice then. If she couldn't have the files, then she'd have to find another way to preserve them.

Alexandra entered a new command into the computer and turned to face the three Leaguers.

……………………………….

"Shit!' Max yelled.

"_What happened?"_ Bruce asked. His sharp voice crackled violently over the loud speaker.

"She activated one of the cryotubes and downloaded some files into one of the clones," Max answered hurriedly. "I managed to block about half of the transfer, but I couldn't stop the other half!"

"_What did she download?"_ Bruce demanded.

"I'm not sure, but the file was called 'LLmemorydata'," she answered. Silence greeted her from the other end. The teenager jumped when she heard Bruce Wayne suddenly swear violently on the other end.

"_LL,"_ Bruce said flatly_. "Lex Luthor. She just downloaded half of the virtual memories of Lex Luthor into one of his clones."_

"_From the looks of it,"_ Booster Gold said over the communication line, _"He's waking up."_

"That's not the worst of it," Max added. "It looks like the command she entered...programmed the system to destroy the other clones after this one wakes up."

"_Destroy!?"_ Terry asked. _"How!? It's not going to blow up…?"_

"_That wouldn't be logical,"_ Bruce answered for Max. _"If she blew up the warehouse, she'd also destroy the clone she just activated."_

"He's right," Max agreed, her fingers flying across the keyboard. "It looks like a chemical is automatically going to be released in the tubes that will cause the other clones to break down on a molecular level. I'm currently working to stop it."

"_In the meantime, let's go greet our new friend,"_ Terry said dryly.

…………………………

Shayera spread her wings and did an aerial somersault as she avoided the weapon's discharge from Luthor's weapon. The other red haired woman ducked behind a piece of machinery for cover. Her eyes intent on the two threats from the air, Alexandra failed to notice the threat from behind.

A sharp fist to her face caused Luthor to stagger back. She winced as another painful blow rammed into her stomach. Alexandra spit out blood and fell to her knees, her eyes watering in pain. A foot kicked the gun out of her hand.

Luthor looked up to see a faceless woman staring down at her.

"That was for what your father did to mine," the Question said coldly. The vigilante reached down and hauled Luthor up by the collar.

"This one's for the shit _you've_ caused us."

Luthor winced as another blow knocked her back several meters, causing her to crash painfully into her computer.

The Question planted a foot firmly onto the woman's chest and reached up to press the communication link in her ear.

"Watchtower," she said calmly. "Mission accomplished. We've got her."

…………………………

A man slowly opened his eyes. He blinked them blurrily, but his vision was still fuzzy. He wasn't sure if it was supposed to be that way.

His mind was very fuzzy too.

A door hissed open in front of him and the man fell out. He managed to break his fall with his hands, but it was still a little painful. He shivered as the cool air met his naked skin.

"So this is him," a voice said. The man looked up to see three figures standing in front of him.

"Who are you?" the man asked. The three strangers looked at each other and then back at the confused, and now slightly frightened, man.

A man dressed in gold stepped forward carefully and knelt in front of him. His golden hair matched his uniform and his brown eyes stared kindly at him.

"We can be your friends," the man in gold answered. The stranger pressed a hand to the man's neck.

"Your pulse is normal," the stranger continued. "Let's take you up to the Watchtower. My staff can take a closer look at you to make sure you're healthy."

"Watch…tower?" the man asked. He stared wide eyed at his surroundings, not sure what to make of everything.

"I'll go with him, you two stay here," a stranger with red hair suddenly said. "You need to monitor the other clones."

_Clones?_

"Good idea," the stranger in black said. The man with red hair also knelt down. He pulled off the jacket he was wearing and put it around the man.

The man wondered briefly how he knew it was called a jacket.

"Let's go," the red haired man said gently. "You look cold."

The man nodded.

……………………………….


	31. The More Things Change

**Sorry for the much delayed update. I haven't forgotten this story, I've just been extremely busy.**

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 31: The More Things Change…_

Wally calmly handed a glass of water to the confused man under his care. Clone of Lex Luthor or not, the speedster refused to treat the man with nothing but kindness. However, as much as an idealist as he was, Wallace West was also a realist.

Others in the League weren't likely to share his view, regardless of them having the best of intentions.

"Why do people keep staring at me?" the clone asked. Clothed now in a spare set of clothing that Wally had found, the bald man was now sitting warily on a chair in the League's infirmary. He gripped his glass of water tightly as he searched for an answer on Wally's face.

"You look like someone they used to know," Wally answered, thinking quickly. "Someone they didn't really get along with.

"Am I him?" the other man asked quietly. Wally paused, but due to his super speed, the clone luckily didn't notice.

"No, but you're related to him," Wally finally said. He had to be careful, as he wasn't sure what to not tell the man. As he wasn't exactly Luthor, he hadn't done anything wrong yet. According to Bruce, about half of the original Luthor's memories had probably been downloaded into the clone's brain. Which of Luthor's memories the man now had though, was a different question. J'onn would probably scan him later.

"Do you remember anything?" the speedster asked. The clone started to shake his head no, but then paused in thought.

"I remember something about a man in red and blue, but it's really blurry," the clone admitted. Wally made a mental note of that, as the clone hadn't actually seen Superman yet.

"Why are you wearing a mask?" the clone finally asked, unable to contain his curiosity. "In fact, why are a lot of the people here wearing weird clothing?"

"How would you know if it's weird or not?" Wally asked with a smile. "You don't remember anything."

"Er…"

"And I'll have you know that my mask is very stylish," the speedster added with mock seriousness. The other man's lips twitched slightly in response. Wally took that as a good sign.

"By the way, my name's Wally," he said. Bruce and everyone else would probably want to kill him for giving that away, but the former Flash wasn't concerned. Considering that he was officially declared dead, he'd have to take up an assumed name anyway. If worse came to worse, it wasn't as if J'onn couldn't wipe it from his memory.

"Wally?" the clone asked. He looked at the red head in surprise before staring down at his hands. The speedster wasn't surprised at the next question he asked.

"What's my name?"

Wally paused another microsecond as he considered his response.

"Let's call you Ira for now," he finally answered. That had been his grandfather's name. Wally hoped that…

"You okay?" the other man asked in concern. Wally nodded as he rubbed his forehead. For a brief moment, his vision had blurred and a sharp pain had run through his body.

"I'm fine."

The pain was gone now anyway. Wally pushed the incident from his mind as he focused his attention back on the other man.

……………………………………………………….

A week later, the seven original members of the Justice League had gathered for an informal meeting at the Kent farm. Normally, other senior League members would be included, but this was different. This was special.

"Hot chocolate Bruce?" Clark asked. Bruce raised an eyebrow as he gave a wry smile.

"Still a boy scout after all these years I see."

"No, actually I'm just an old farm boy who loves his chocolate," the Kryptonian admitted. He poured a cup for Bruce and handed it to his old friend. After a moment of thought, he pulled out several more cups. John would be indignant if he found out that he'd missed a chance of getting hot chocolate.

"Where's everyone else?" Bruce asked. "We agreed to start the meeting at ten." He took the frothy cup of chocolate and sipped gingerly on it.

"You always make it too hot Kent."

"A complaint by the great Bruce Wayne?" Clark Kent smiled with mock surprise. "Either you've gotten cranky in your old age or Terry's rubbed off on you."

"If I were Terry, all of your hot chocolate would be gone and half of your fridge would be empty," Bruce observed dryly.

"And If I were David or Wally, there would be no food in this house," Clark added. Both men shared a chuckle. The Kryptonian smiled inwardly as he watched Bruce relax. Terry had done wonders on him. He shook his head and returned to their original topic.

"Wally's on a food run…"

"Didn't see that coming," Bruce said dryly.

"J'onn's with him…"

"Are you trying to frighten me Kent?"

"Why's that frightening?" Clark asked. The other man bit his lip back in a rare smile.

"Do you have any idea how much food and Oreo cookies they can buy? Wally and J'onn have been missing for decades and now we've let them loose in a grocery store with no supervision," he said. "You might have to put it all out in one of the barns."

"You're the one that gave Wally money," Clark pointed out. Bruce sighed, as if to say 'I regret it now.' Clark chuckled as he continued naming off their presently absent friends.

"Diana is…actually I have no idea where Diana is," Clark admitted. "I thought she was with Shayera."

"She's not?"

"No, right now Shayera's trying to make John understand that he's no longer forty years old." Superhearing had its perks. The former Green Lantern had apparently decided that he needed to fix the ceiling light in Kara's old bedroom. Hopefully Shayera could talk him out of it before he fell and broke something.

"Do I even want to know what he's up to this time?" Bruce asked. "He challenged Terry to a basketball game yesterday."

"John's a kid at heart Bruce, he always has been. The only difference now is that he's no longer afraid to admit to it."

Bruce smirked as he blew on his hot chocolate. Unfortunately for John, he no longer had the body to act like a kid. His smirk widened as the faint sound of Thanagarian cursing drifted down the stairs.

"John's trying to fix the light in that bedroom, isn't he?"

Bruce was answered by a crash and a yelp of pain.

………………………………………

Wallace Rudolph West and J'onn J'onzz stared in silent awe at the wall of snacks in front of them. Dozens of tantalizing new items greeted their eyes.

"Twenty. Twenty new flavors of Oreos," Wally whispered. The disguised J'onn stared wide eyed at the different flavors.

"Do you think Bruce would mind if we…?"

"Please…forty boxes of Oreos?" Wally asked, as of course, each man would want one for himself. "He can afford to buy the whole company." Besides, he wanted to see the look on the man's face when he and J'onn hauled in their loot.

"Oh for the love of Hera, why am I not surprised?"

Wally nearly dropped his armful of Oreos as he jumped into the air. A bemused smile crossed the Martian's face as he began slipping the cookies into the shopping cart. The speedster scowled, as the man had obviously failed to warn him that a certain Amazon was in the store.

"Diana!" Wally hissed, keeping his voice down. He and J'onn were already attracting some curious stares. The last thing he needed was for anyone to recognize Wonder Woman. The woman in question rolled her eyes as she placed her own items into their cart.

"Sweet tea?" Wally asked. "Since when do you drink sweet tea? And…wait a…are those Twinkies? Twinkies!?"

"I blame William," she sighed, referring to a now adult Billy Batson.

"Turned you to the Dark Side, did he?" Wally laughed. "Ollie and I corrupted him well."

"He used to be such a sweet boy," Diana accused.

"That 'sweet boy' taught my kids how to swear in German."

"Didn't a certain someone also teach them how to swear in Kryptonian?" Diana asked, raising an eyebrow. Wally snorted in reply.

"Some Boy Scout he turned out to be."

……………………………………………………….

Maxine Gibson displayed an air of confidence as she wound her way through the Gotham City Police Department, hiding a small knot of anxiety. The Commissioner had asked her to meet with her in her office, as this was the only time that the busy Gordon could meet with her this week. The Luthor affair was still keeping them all busy.

According to Terry, Gordon had spent ten minutes swearing at the amount of paperwork she had to do when he'd last dropped unannounced into her office. Max was fairly certain that at least some of those ten minutes were spent swearing at Terry.

The teenager took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She took a moment to summon her courage and raised her fist up to knock on the door.

"Get in here Gibson."

Damn, she was good.

Max opened the door and strode into the office. The young woman paused in surprise when she spotted another occupant in the room.

"Don't mind me," Kara Kent grinned. The blonde lounged lazily on the edge of the Commissioner's messy desk as she sipped on an iced mocha.

"Yes, she has the annoying habit of taking up space," Barbara Gordon said dryly, but Max detected no trace of actual irritation in her voice. It suddenly struck her that these two women were old friends.

_Well duh Gibson, they were Batgirl and Supergirl._

"Uh…you wanted to see me?" Max asked.

"I wanted to tell you that you did a good job and that I'm impressed," Barbara said. Indeed, she truly was. After Wally had taken the awakened Luthor clone back up to the Watchtower, Max had managed to prevent most of the others from being destroyed.

"Is that…?"

"And I want to offer you a proposition," the Commissioner finished. Max's heart skipped a beat.

"Proposition?" she asked weakly, trying not to get her hopes up. An all too familiar smirk rose on Gordon's face. Maxine knew it all too well, as Terry had a similar one.

"She wants you to be the new Oracle," Kara piped up. Barbara glared at her friend. The blonde sipped innocently on her drink, knowing full well that she had spoiled the other woman's fun.

"Really?" a surprised Max asked. "I thought you were against vigilantism now."

"I didn't say I was training you to be Batgirl," Barbara replied wryly. "You're not going to be running around in a mask and tights if you work for me."

"But as Oracle I'd still be helping vigilantism," Max replied innocently.

"She's good," Kara said. "I like her. We can use another smart ass."

"Shut up Kent."

"Someone's gotten cranky in her old age," the other woman quipped. "I think you need an iced mocha." Barbara rolled her eyes and sighed, causing Max to suppress a snicker.

"_Technically_ you may _occasionally_ be helping certain vigilantes and superheroes," Barbara finally said, "But you'll mostly be helping _me_."

"You know, that's called rationalizing in some places," Kara pointed out.

"And in addition you'll work as my aide," Babs continued, pointedly ignoring the Argosian. "You'll be paid of course."

"Uh…" Max stammered.

"And of course I'll train you when I have the time. Your hacking skills are good kid, but they can be better."

"I…"

"And I expect you to learn martial arts. Even if you don't run around in tights, you have to be able to defend yourself," Barbara continued.

"When will…"

"I know a good school in Gotham you can go to. I'm personal friends with the main instructor."

"I…" Max attempted again.

"Jeez Babs, doesn't the kid get to talk?"

"Finally, at least once a week you will be personally training with me," the Commissioner finished. She crossed her fingers and peered intently at the pink haired teenager. A long moment of silence passed as Maxine stared at the white haired woman. Gordon had certainly put a lot of thought into this.

"When do I start?" Max grinned. A large smirk crossed Barbara's face as her eyes twinkled mischievously.

"I need some help sorting through my paper work. Feel free to kick Kara off the desk."

"What?" Kara asked. "I'm sitting here!"

"Lesson number one," Barbara Gordon stated, looking at Max. "Never be intimidated by a big Red 'S.' They should be the ones intimidated by you."

"May your coffee always be scalding hot," Kara muttered.

……………………………………………….

"John did _what_!?" Wally asked.

"I was _trying_ to fix the light," an irate John Stewart replied. He crossed his arms and glared at the red head. The former Marine had his now sprained ankle propped up on a pillow.

"You were trying to fix a ceiling light," Shayera sighed. "You're eighty-six years old John! You walk with a cane. What in the world were you thinking?"

"He wasn't," Bruce smirked. John glared at him.

"Anyway," Clark sighed. "We're just lucky that nothing's broken. If Shayera hadn't caught you, it'd be worse." At least they hadn't woken Lois up. His wife hadn't aged as well as John or Bruce, despite the fact that she'd never taken the physical punishments that they'd had when they were younger. It was very hard for him to see how frail she'd become.

"We have business to attend to," Bruce said. The seven friends looked at each other and nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, we can make fun of John later."

"Shut up Wally," John glared.

"Just like old times," Diana murmured. She felt her heart warm as she took in the sight of all seven of them together.

"Good God Wally!" John shouted. "How much did you and J'onn buy!?"

"Hey! I brought you Ben & Jerry's! Be nice!"

"Would you two please be quiet?" Clark pleaded. "Lois is sleeping."

"John started it!"

Bruce sighed a moment before brandishing his cane threateningly at the other two men. Unfortunately, it didn't quite have the desired effect. Wally merely laughed and John brandished his own cane in response.

"Bring it Bruce," John ordered.

"Hera," Diana muttered. She and Shayera laughed as an exasperated Clark finally confiscated John and Bruce's canes and hid them in an undisclosed location.

Yes, they had serious business to attend to. They needed to discuss the fate of Alexandra Luthor, her father's clones, and other matters. However, that could wait a few more minutes.

For the moment, Diana of Themyscira simply enjoyed the company of her six friends.

………………

_The more things change, the more they stay the same._


	32. Decisions

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 32: Decisions_

Exhausted from a tiring week of superheroics, a part time (full-time) job as a personal assistant to an aging billionaire, and a high school senior close to graduating, Terry McGinnis was taking a rare, but well deserved nap.

Mary McGinnis, unaware of her son's other life, shook her head. The hard working mother was secretly pleased with how her child's life had turned around. Formerly a delinquent on the verge of dropping out, Terry was turning into a responsible young man.

Even though she was ignorant of his second 'job', the mother couldn't help but be pleased with his improved performance in school. Despite working long hours, often late into the night, Terry had managed to pull up his GPA.

Mrs. McGinnis wasn't sure if it was because of the death of her ex-husband, the influence of Bruce Wayne, or both, but Terry had greatly matured in the past year.

Perhaps Matt was also, in his own childish way, showing signs of maturity as well.

Normally the young boy would be pestering his older brother and not allowing him to rest. However, Matthew McGinnis had quietly turned off the television when he'd discovered that his brother had fallen asleep. He'd even gone so far as to cover Terry with a blanket when he'd thought that their mother wasn't watching.

Her children were growing up too fast.

"Mom?"

Mary shook herself out of her musings as her youngest child walked into the kitchen. He had a serious look on his face.

"What?" she asked.

"I want to take karate."

They were growing up much _too_ fast. Mary refrained from asking why the boy wanted to take karate. She'd taken it as a youngster in junior high, so she understood the beneficial discipline and exercise that he could learn.

"There are a lot of schools in Gotham City," Mary McGinnis smiled. "I suppose that'd we'd better start looking at them."

She was met by an excited smile.

…………………………

"So what's the plan?"

David looked over at the Atlantean girl who'd spoken to him. He and Aquagirl were currently eying a large wildfire that was raging over the dry, north plains of Texas.

Did he mention dry? There was little water that Merina could use. The area that they were trying to protect was having a chronic water shortage. Even so, they had to put out the fire. People's homes and lives depended upon it.

"I've got an idea," the teenager answered. Without waiting for a response, he raced around the grassfire. Even though the fire itself was a miles long wall of flames, the Flash easily circled it in seconds.

He raced faster and faster, depriving the fire of oxygen. Eventually, it dwindled and died out.

David, taking only a brief nanosecond to catch his breath, zoomed off to the northern United States. Areas in Minnesota and Wisconsin were experiencing massive flooding, so he figured that he could solve two problems at once.

Zooming back and forth between the flooding and the source of the wildfire, the Flash was able to draw a massive amount of water over hundreds of miles.

The extra water was deposited over the burnt grasslands.

Aquagirl, catching on, immediately spread the water over the landscape. Dying fields of crops received a gift of precious liquid.

The grandson of Wally West smiled proudly at his ingenuity. Being a superhero wasn't just about defeating supervillains.

It was about helping the laborers and the farmers, ordinary people just trying to live their lives.

…………………………………….

"According to Waller, Luthor's first hearing will be next week on the 17th," Bruce stated calmly. He and the others were currently seated in Clark's living room. This was the first time that all seven of them had been together in years. What was supposed to be a meeting had been more like a party at first.

Now, however, they had settled down to business.

"What about the clones?" Shayera asked. The US government had tried to take possession of Lex Luthor's clones, including the one that had been awakened. The awakened one, the one that Wally had dubbed 'Ira', was currently on the Watchtower with Dr. Fate.

"We've had some trouble with that," Bruce admitted. "Fortunately, Waller still has some pull with the government."

"Meaning…?" Diana asked.

"Meaning that the clones won't be destroyed or experimented on…at least the ones that are still alive," Bruce answered. Many of Luthor's clones _had_ been experimented on…by Alexandra herself. Most of them hadn't survived. Some were advanced in age and others were still technically children.

"We've come to a solution," J'onn added. "At least, if everyone is in agreement."

"There are eleven clones that range in age from approximately eleven months to seventeen years old," the billionaire continued. "And unlike the first one, none of these had Luthor's memories downloaded into them. They're all a blank slate. Our plan is to place them in foster care so that they have a chance to grow up and live normal lives."

"That's crazy," Clark protested. All eyes turned to him. "I mean, I'm all for trying to get them a chance at a normal life," the Kryptonian hurriedly explained. "But even if you place them far apart, isn't it going to be obvious someday that you have several men who not only look alike, but look like Luthor?"

Bruce and J'onn shared a long look. The two heroes had discussed this at length privately.

"This…is where it gets complicated," Bruce admitted reluctantly. "But by slightly altering their DNA, we can make some of Luthor's recessive genes become the dominant genes. This would alter their physical characteristics."

"What about the families?" John finally asked. "You can't just dump one of these kids on any family without them knowing who he is. We also have to be careful with how they're raised."

"I'll take one," a calm voice stated. The whole room froze as all eyes turned to view the newly returned Scarlet Speedster.

"Wally, we don't even know what we're going to do with you yet," Shayera pointed out. "You're officially dead, so you have no paperwork, no identity…hell….we're still not sure if you're physically up to it yet!"

"Come on Shay…I'm as healthy as I've ever been!" Wally retorted. "I'm not an invalid! I can…"

"We'll discuss it later," Bruce cut in. A slight note of annoyance in his voice stopped the bickering immediately. He gave Wally a considering look, but Bruce was still forced to agree with Shayera.

"Your body's still unstable," he said. "In fact, the most recent tests showed that your cells are rapidly aging, far more than normal…even for you."

Wally stared at the other man. While the speedster had noticed more gray in his hair that morning, as well as the appearance of a previously nonexistent wrinkle, he wasn't quite ready to concede that it was nothing more than stress.

Of course, when it came to things like this, when was Batman ever _wrong_?

"I have been getting a lot of headaches lately," Wally finally said. After a moment, he decided to change the subject.

"So what about Ira?"

"Who?" Clark asked. Wally rolled his eyes.

"Dr. Fate has offered to take him in," J'onn said. "He is currently helping him to sort through his…experience."

…………………………………….

Inza hummed to herself as she brewed a pot of tea. Her husband, Dr. Fate, was currently seated across from a young, bald man. Luthor's clone was having a hard time coming to terms with his 'memories.' Her husband and J'onn had finally deemed it necessary to tell him the truth.

That of course had made things harder for the man, but the truth was better than a lie.

"I'm…not real?" The man now known as 'Ira' asked.

"You are quite real," Dr. Fate answered. "You're just not the man that you think you are."

"Then who am I supposed to be? I've got this Luthor guy's memories, or at least part of him. I look like him. Doesn't this make me him?" Ira asked.

"Only if you choose to be."

The clone contemplated that for a long time. Except for his experiences of the last week, he had no memories of his own. He also had no where to go.

"What am I supposed to do?" Ira finally pleaded. Hearing that, Inza picked up a cup of herbal tea and handed it to the confused man.

"Learn, experience…and then decide," she answered. The sorceress placed the cup into Ira's hands. "We would like you to live with us for awhile."

Ira looked at her with questioning eyes and then turned his gaze onto the masked wizard.

"Well, I guess it's not like I'm doing anything else," he finally answered.

Dr. Fate allowed himself a pleased smile. It would be a long time before the other man came to terms with his circumstances, if he ever did. The clone had also showed signs of having superpowers. Superman had been more than a little dismayed to find that some of Kara's DNA had been spliced into Ira.

He'd been more troubled by it than Kara herself. Rather than getting upset, she only remarked that 'she'd always wanted a kid, just not one with Luthor.' Of course, Chameleon had also been a mix of Kara, J'onn, and Lex's DNA.

The thought of Chameleon caused a slight frown behind his yellow mask. J'onn had completely mindwiped the metahuman, to the point that he was now a drooling mess. It had been a far more violent attack than he would have expected from the Martian.

This had secretly raised concerns within the wizard's mind, just as he suspected it had in Bruce's mind as well. He had even overheard the younger Green Arrow privately discussing the Cadmus fiasco with his friend, Booster Gold. Ethan Queen was obviously having serious doubts about the Martian Manhunter, even if he had yet to voice it publicly.

Fate had wanted to run his own tests on J'onn. After being kept in cryostasis for so long under Alexandra Luthor's care, there was no telling if he or Kara had been tampered with. The Martian, of course, was refusing.

He hoped that Kara would be more willing to work with him.

…………………………………….

Bruce and Clark found themselves seated in the kitchen again. The group had decided to take a break. The women were seated with Lois on the back porch. Wally was on another food run. John was taking a nap and J'onn was…

Actually, J'onn was with the three women. Clark watched discretely in amusement as the Martian petted of their cats and listened as the other three gossiped. Of course, none of them would ever admit that it was gossip.

If it had been one of the other men out there, they would have been kicked out instantly.

"There's things we need to discuss…privately," Bruce finally said. Clark gave him a questioning look, but had a suspicion that it was about J'onn.

"You know that he probably knows whatever we're thinking," the Kryptonian answered. Bruce didn't answer. He didn't need to.

"I wanted to talk to you about Jon-El as well," Clark finally said.

"I figured that you did."

Although the other five were very close friends, the best friends that Clark could ever have, there were still times that he'd rather discuss things privately with Bruce.

The two men were silent for a few minutes. With a close friendship spanning decades and the occasional feud, they were long past the need to have a long, vocal conversation. They understood each other quite well without one.

"Do you want to meet at the Fortress or at your house?" Clark asked.

"My place is fine," Bruce answered. "Come over sometime tomorrow morning." Clark nodded in reply. Then, after a moment…

"I miss Alfred," Clark sighed. Bruce swallowed a sudden lump in his throat.

"That makes two of us Kent."

………………………………..

"It's been a long time ladies," Dinah Lance Queen remarked. The elderly woman was still surprisingly spry in her old age. Helena Bertinelli Szasz and Barbara Gordon, being the slightly younger members of the trio, were still in excellent shape as well.

Barbara was still the police commissioner, wasn't she? Helena, only two years her senior, was still more than capable of getting into and out of trouble.

"I hear you've got yourself a disciple Gordon," the Huntress said bluntly. The fiery Italian had never been one for mincing words. "I thought that you'd sworn off the superhero business."

"She's going to be Oracle, not Batgirl," Barbara replied dryly. Helena rolled her eyes dramatically before leaning in with a sly grin.

"Puh-leeze…as if we buy that. She's still technically going to be a crime fighter, even if it's only behind a computer."

"Are you going to teach her how to fight?" Dinah asked, as if that were the most important thing.

"Of course I am!" Barbara snapped. "The kid's gotta know how to defend herself." The other two women smirked in reply.

"Does Bruce know?" Dinah asked.

"To hell with Bruce. If he gets Terry, I get to have Max."

"Do I sense some rivalry here?" Helena asked. The Italian woman received a female Batglare. The former Huntress merely grinned in reply. Both she and Dinah's daughters had decided to enter the superhero arena as well. Now that Gordon had a student, there was one thing on her mind.

Like the legendary phoenix, the Birds of Prey might very well rise again.

…………………..

It was the middle of the night by the time that Wally made a very personal visit. Even Bruce had not objected and had in fact encouraged it. He would have to bring David here later, but for now, the former Scarlet Speedster wanted to be alone.

Wally knelt down in front of his wife's gravestone.

Beside it lay the graves of his children and the son-in-law that he'd never known.

Feeling quite old, he carefully arranged flowers over their graves. He talked to them long through the night.

Terry McGinnis, under orders from Bruce, silently kept watch from the shadows. Like an invisible sentinel, the young man guarded Wally without his knowledge.

The next day, he decided to take Matt on a visit to their father.


	33. The Road Goes Ever On

_**Last chapter!**_

**Resurrecting the Red**

_Chapter 33: The Road Goes Ever On_

Nearly a month had passed since Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne had met privately to discuss their mutual friend, J'onn J'onzz. The Justice Lords had dominated their conversation. After much debate and an occasional loss of temper, they had finally decided to confront J'onn.

J'onn, to say the least, hadn't been surprised. The telepath had not only been expecting it, but had been agonizing over his decision as well. The decision to remove Chameleon as a viable threat by mindwiping him had seemed logical at the time.

To a telepath though, what J'onn had done was tantamount to mental rape. There was a reason that it had been outlawed on his world.

It was ironic. The Justice Lord J'onn, even somewhat the old J'onn, had been so distanced from humanity that brutal methods at keeping the peace had seemed _right_. The current J'onn, however, now had the memory of _two_ lost loves to deal with. His Martian wife and now his human wife, Ming, were both deceased. His captivity under Luthor had deprived him of her.

J'onn had lashed out. Anger over his imprisonment and his close ties to the very humans who had once disgusted him had pushed him to the brutal methods that he had once abhorred. The others were right to distrust him.

The lonely Martian sat contemplating in Z'onn Z'orr, his private sanctuary in Antarctica. In his lap sat a book that had been introduced to him long ago by Bruce Wayne. J'onn often found himself turning to it when he felt lost.

J'onn opened Marcus Aurelius's Meditations and began reading.

…………………………

Wally felt a large smile grow on his face as he sat in the large gymnasium. The bleachers were filled with waiting friends and family. Hundreds of empty, neatly ordered chairs awaited the excited graduates gathering just outside of the large room.

He looked down at his hand and examined the new wrinkles covering it. Bruce's prediction had been correct. Wally's body had aged unnaturally fast. It had puzzled the medical staff and created a worried frenzy among his friends. It was finally determined that his aging was linked to his time in the speed force.

Once Wally reached the age he was supposed to be, it had slowed down to normal levels. Psychologically however, it was taking the Scarlet Speedster much longer to adjust to his now seventy-four year old body.

"You alright?"

Wally looked over at Bruce. The two men were sitting with Evan Kae, the man who had raised his grandson. On the other side of Bruce sat Terry's family.

"It's going to take time," he finally answered. Wally held out one of his hands to Bruce. "You've had longer than me to get used to this." Bruce answered him with a wry smirk.

With help from Amanda Waller, Wally now had a new identity.

The name of David's parents had been changed on his birth certificate and both of his maternal grandparents were supposedly dead. It had been deemed too risky for Wally to publicly be his grandfather. Because of that, Wally had decided on the next best thing and would officially be David's 'great-uncle.'

Bruce had showed uncharacteristic emotion when Wally had asked permission to use 'Alfred' as his middle name.

John Alfred Grayson, that was a good name.

Dick had had a good laugh when he heard it.

The opening notes of Pomp and Circumstance began to play. The graduating seniors of Hamilton Hill High School slowly filed into the gymnasium. Wally soon caught sight of David, Terry, and Max. He felt his chest fill up with pride as he watched the three young adults.

At his side, Bruce expertly hid a sudden moistness in his own eyes.

………………………………………………….

**Four days later:**

An explosion rocked the hidden government compound. Security alarms sounded as force fields immediately came on to barricade the prisoner within. Artificial red sunlight bathed the whole wing of the compound as heavily armed security guards searched for the source of the disturbance.

Jon-El peered out of his containment cell with unbridled curiosity.

There were several more explosions. The lights flickered and went out. After several seconds, emergency back up lights came back on. Unfortunately for the clone, the artificial red sunlight was also backed up in case of emergencies.

As he contemplated the mysterious battle going on within the compound, the armored door to his room was blasted open. Jon-El threw himself to the floor, but fortunately, the force field surrounding his prison cell also protected him from the blast.

Just as he looked up, a sheet of ice froze the other occupants of the room to the wall.

"Hey Kryptonian! You in here!?"

Definitely curious now, Jon-El stood up and looked through his containment field. A haughty, brunette haired woman, possibly in her forties, stood impatiently in the room. A blue and white coat covered her body, as did a small mask.

"Technically I'm half-Kryptonian," Jon-El answered.

"I don't care if you're half-Martian," the unknown woman answered. "Do you want out of here or not?"

"Do I really need to answer that?" the clone asked. The woman smiled.

"You've got spunk Kid, I like that. The name's Captain Cold."

"May I ask about the occasion?" Jon-El asked. The other occupant of the room, a young boy of about fifteen, merely grinned as his fingers flew over a nearby computer console.

"We're the newly reconstituted Rogues," the boy grinned. He appeared to be of South Asian descent. "You can call me Havoc. I'm the residential genius hacker."

"Later boys, we've got to go," the self-proclaimed Captain Cold answered. With just a few more taps of the boy's hands, the force field disappeared from around Jon-El. The woman pulled out a small, makeup mirror.

"What are you…?" Jon-El started to ask. This seemed like an inappropriate time to check one's make up.

"Into the mirror Kid," the woman barked. Before Jon-El could reply, he found himself being sucked through the mirror. He was instantly deposited through a large mirror in a wall. Jon-El suffered the indignity of landing on his face. Moments later, Captain Cold and the young Havoc also exited the mirror, only to land on their feet.

The half-Kryptonian clone hurriedly got to his feet and examined the other occupants of the room.

"You got him?" an old man asked.

"Pff, of course we did," Havoc answered hotly. "We're the Rogues."

"You're not a Rogue yet," he reminded the boy. The old man looked over at the recent escapee.

"You can call me Weather Wizard," he added. After a moment of hesitation, Jon-El shook his hand.

"I've heard of you before," the clone said. The old man laughed.

"I'm not as spry as I used to be," he answered. Mark Mardon, the aging wizard, began to introduce his fellow Rogues to the clone.

"You've already met Cold and Havoc. This joker over here is Mirror Master," Jon-El looked over to see a man sitting at a table, playing with a small mirror. "And the last member, the one who provided a distraction for your rescuers, is Pied Piper."

A tall, caramel skinned woman nodded her head at Jon-El. Her dark, frizzy hair was pulled neatly back with a green comb. She also wore sleek, green outfit and a short green cloak. Jon-El's eyes paused on her _very_ shapely legs.

She was the most beautiful woman that he'd ever seen.

"What do you want with me?" he asked. The elderly Weather Wizard smiled.

"We'd like you to join the family," Mark Mardon answered.

"Why?"

"Because the Flash is back in town," he answered. "And to be quite honest Kid, you don't really have anywhere else to go. Besides...unlike the so-called Injustice League, we Rogues actually take care of each other."

………………………..

Barbara Gordon felt her eyes tear up as she hugged Kara Kent goodbye. The blonde haired woman had written a message to her future friends and left it in a safe location where it could be found. Brainiac 5 had found it and had come to take her back to what was now her home.

"I'm going to miss you," Kara sniffed.

"At least I get to tell you good bye this time," Barbara answered. The two women hugged fiercely and let go. Kara then turned to her waiting cousin and gave him an even harder hug.

"Stay out of trouble, Clark," she said. She kissed him on the cheek and looked back at Barbara. An older Clark Kent was waiting for her in the future. Barbara Gordon was not.

The two women shared a long look and knew that they would never see each other again.

"Bye Kent," Barbara smiled. Kara smiled back.

"Bye Gordon."

She and Brainiac 5 vanished in a flash of light. Barbara willed herself not to cry.

It was a losing battle.

………………………..

Terry McGinnis, David Kae, and Maxine Gibson were in a very unusual situation. In congratulations for their high school graduation, as well as their work in helping the League, Clark Kent had decided to take them all out for ice cream.

It didn't matter that they were on the verge of starting college. How often did one get treated to ice cream by _Superman_?

"This place has the best ice cream in Metropolis," Clark grinned boyishly. "They make it from scratch every day." Eighty-some years and a streak of white hair hadn't erased the country boy from his heart. The disguised Kryptonian dug eagerly into his chocolate fudge sundae.

"Mr. uh…Elliot," David said. Since he appeared to be too young to pass as Clark Kent, Clark had taken up the name Jordan Elliot has a pseudonym. "How's…uh…your wife?"

"She's doing fine," Clark answered. His hair had been dyed brown and a fake, but realistic, mustache adorned his upper lip. "What're kids planning to do now that you've graduated?"

"We're all going to Gotham State," Max answered. "I'm not sure what I'm going into yet." The other two teenagers nodded their heads in agreement.

"I'm not sure either," David admitted. "I've been thinking about history or journalism." Clark's eyes immediately lit up at the mention of journalism. The young Flash suddenly realized the he would probably be bombarded with helpful 'advice' from the older man later. Clark, however, chose only to smile and look over at the second young man.

"Terry?" he asked. "What about you?" Terry was silent for a time before he answered.

"I want to buy back the part of the company that Bruce sold to Derek Powers," he finally answered seriously. "Bruce regrets having done that. I plan to fix it and return the company to Wayne Enterprises."

Clark looked at him in surprise. Inside however, he was pleased with the response. He knew that Bruce had several regrets in his life. Two of them were his failed relationships with Selina and Diana. A third was his choice to sell part of his company.

"That's an admirable goal, Terry. I wish you luck," he said. Clark started to say something else, but the communicator in his ear beeped. The three young heroes watched as his expression changed and realized that something was up.

"Something wrong?" Max asked. Clark quickly survived their surroundings and decided that the risk of being overheard was too great. He pulled out a pen and wrote 'Jon-El has escaped' on a napkin. As soon as the other three read it, he crumpled it up and put it in his pocket to dispose of later.

"Are you leaving?" Terry asked. Clark looked at him and then down at his ice cream.

"Over the years I've learned to delegate. The situation's in good hands at the moment," he answered. He gave a small smile and took a bite of his ice cream. "I think I can spare five or ten more minutes."

It was a hard lesson that Clark had learned, but it was true. Superman didn't need to be everywhere at once when there were other people perfectly capable of handling the situation.

Sometimes, the place he needed to be was where he could get to know the next generation of the brave and the bold.

………………………….

Bruce was sitting by an open window the next day when he heard a strange racket coming from outside. Jon-El's mysterious escape was currently plaguing him. The frozen government staff and the small, cosmetic mirror that had been found at the scene had immediately raised his suspicions.

After the reappearance of the Flash, it was almost inevitable that the Rogues would reappear in some form. He just hadn't thought that it would be this soon.

He attempted to keep his mind on the puzzle, but the strangely familiar sound of a ball bouncing on cement attracted his curiosity. Bruce picked up his cane and followed the sound to its source. Ace followed faithfully at his side.

Outside, in front of the garage, he found Terry, David, and Max shooting hoops. Somewhere they had found and put up the basketball hoop that he had once bought for Tim. Bruce was surprised that he'd even still had it.

"Hey! That looks like fun!"

Bruce turned to see that Wally had joined him. His friend and fellow teammate apparently wasn't allowing old age to slow him down. The billionaire suspected that he had run over from David and Evan's apartment, where he was now living.

"You're not young anymore Wally," Bruce reprimanded him.

"I'm young at heart," he retorted. "I still need my exercise you know." Even so, Bruce noticed that he was slightly out of breath. Wally watched the game for a few seconds before his face lightened up.

"What hell are you planning?" Bruce asked. Wally only grinned mysteriously as he dialed Dick Grayson's number.

Half an hour later, Dick, Barbara, and even Tim had arrived at the mansion. Before long, Wally had organized a basketball game between the 'Old Geezers' and the 'Young Punks.' He decided to guard David, since they both had superspeed. Terry and Barbara naturally faced off, leaving Dick to guard Max.

"I guess it's you and me, Kid," Dick smiled. Max smiled back. Tim, for his part, had decided to be both the referee and the score keeper. He sat self importantly in a lawn chair, armed with a whistle and a pad of paper.

"Prepare to get your butt kicked, McGinnis," Barbara threatened. Terry only smirked back.

"I'm going to curb stomp you Gordon!"

"What was that McGinnis!?"

"You need a hearing aid Granny?"

"You're dead, McGinnis!!"

_So the trash talk has started already_, Bruce thought wryly. It figured that it would be Barbara and Terry that started it. The elderly Batman decided that the Jon-El case could perhaps wait a little while. There was an interesting basketball game that he didn't want to miss.

Speaking of which…

Bruce dialed a few numbers of his own. Within minutes, he was joined by several old friends. Clark and Diana brought lemonade and plastic cups. J'onn brought Oreos. John and Shayera brought a camera, chips, and more trash talk.

As his friends began to cheer and shout words of 'advice' to the basketball players, Clark leaned in towards Bruce.

"Any word on Jon-El?" he whispered.

"No," Bruce answered. He took a sip of ice cold lemonade. "Remember Kent, he's not your son."

"I know."

There was a pause as they watched Tim cry 'Foul ball!' The game continued, only to be interrupted a few minutes later by Terry and Barbara trying to out-trash talk the other.

John shouted out his own 'pointers.'

"It never ends, does it Bruce?" Clark asked.

"Crime never ends," Bruce said impassively. "Don't worry though. Whatever happens, we'll take care of it."

"We always do," Clark agreed. With nothing more to be said, they relaxed and watched the rest of the game.

The Old Geezers won by two points.

……………………………..

The Road goes ever on and on  
Down from the door where it began.  
Now far ahead the Road has gone,  
And I must follow, if I can,  
Pursuing it with eager feet,  
Until it joins some larger way  
Where many paths and errands meet.  
And whither then? I cannot say.

_(As sung by Bilbo Baggins in the __Fellowship of the Ring__.)_

………………….

_**Author's notes:** Well, it's the end of the road for this story. I don't know at this point if I'll do a sequel or not. I'd like to focus on Original Prankster for a little while, unless there is a large demand for a sequel._

_The name of J'onn's JLU girlfriend is never officially stated. The name Ming is used by Mists in her stories and I decided to borrow it. Wally's new name, John Alfred Grayson, is my own creation. However, Clark's fake name is not. **Jor**dan **El**liot is the false name that Clark uses in Alan Moore's "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?"_

_**Thanks for reading!**  
_


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